0149 GMT - Wealth-management platform provider Hub24's prospects look likely to outpace Netwealth's on several fronts, says UBS. It thinks Hub24's adviser growth rate will be double that of its rival's. Also, Hub24 can expand its market share at a faster rate, which is "invaluable as advisers trend toward a single platform," analyst Shreyas Patel says. UBS upgrades Hub24 to buy, from neutral, and lifts its price target by 42% to A$105.00/share. The bank likes Hub24's operating leverage, given its lower margins compared with Netwealth. "We note Hub24's historical track record of doubling its market share more quickly than Netwealth, and consider tech adjacencies as providing long-term optionality in an exclusive platform world," UBS adds. Hub24 is up 3.3% at A$94.78. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0142 GMT - South32's sale of its Cerro Matoso nickel operation in northern Colombia is positive, says RBC Capital Markets. That's despite some disappointment at the price fetched for the asset. South32 says its deal with a unit of CoreX is worth up to US$100 million. RBC had valued the asset at US$125 million. But the deal makes sense because it reduces the drag on South32's earnings, says analyst Kaan Peker. It also "upgrades the portfolio as it removes a complex, low free cash flow generating asset, which is facing structural headwinds," RBC says. Other attractions of the deal include better prospects for capital management and an increased exposure to forward-facing commodities, such as copper and zinc, the bank says. South32 is up 0.2% at A$3.125. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0136 GMT - Beach Energy remains one of Morgan Stanley's least-preferred Australian energy stocks ahead of its 4Q production update. Recent swings in oil prices have been positive for Beach, and MS raises its EPS estimate for FY 2025 by 4%. However, MS pushes back its expectation for maiden natural gas output from the Waitsia Stage 2 project in Western Australia to the September quarter. "And we lifted tolls and tariffs and third party gas costs [one LNG cargo in June quarter], only partially offset by field production cost decline," analyst Rob Koh says. Those changes result a 7% cut to its FY 2026 EPS forecast, and a 1% reduction to its outlook for FY 2027. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0125 GMT - The U.S.-Vietnam trade deal is a positive for Skellerup, says Forsyth Barr. Skellerup generates 35% of revenue from the U.S., which has been a key growth market. Revenue from the U.S. has grown at a compound annual rate of 11% over the past decade. That is double the group average, says analyst Rohan Koreman-Smit. The bank points out that 85% of U.S. revenue is derived from products sourced from New Zealand, China, and Vietnam in equal proportions. Under the trade deal, a 20% tariff will apply on all Vietnamese imports, below the 46% imposed in early April. "Both the Vietnamese tariff rate and Skellerup's confidence in full mitigation are better than we had modelled, and we lift our forecasts accordingly," says Forsyth Barr. It retains an outperform call on Skellerup.([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0032 GMT - Investors in Northern Star Resources appear to have taken fright at the company's FY 2026 cost guidance, with the stock down 5.4% today. Northern Star has signaled a A$2,300-A$2,700/oz range for all-in sustaining costs. That compared with consensus forecasts of A$2,130/oz for FY 2026. Ord Minnett says the higher cost guidance reflects inflationary pressure, increases to sustaining capital from more underground development at major mines, and processing capital across all facilities, among other reasons. "Growth capex has also come in higher than expected," analyst Paul Kaner says. Ord Minnett had forecast growth capex of some A$1.85 billion. Northern Star today forecasts it to be A$2.13 billion-A$2.27 billion. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2313 GMT - WiseTech Global's bull at Citi takes heart from a pick-up in hiring activity by the logistics software company. Total headcount is up 6% on year, the bank says. Staffing levels increased by 140 in 2H, compared to a 32-person rise in 1H. Meanwhile, job listings are sending another bullish signal, Analyst Siraj Ahmed says. While this activity points to growth in operating expenses, Citi says "consensus opex growth (is) too high in our view in both FY 2025 and FY 2026." Citi's Ebitda forecast for FY 2025 is some 2% ahead of market expectations. "While we see downside to consensus revenue growth in FY 2026 (and expect it to be 2H weighted), we see stronger Ebitda margins and FX as offsets," Citi says. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2304 GMT - Intensifying regulatory scrutiny of ASX is keeping Citi at neutral on the Australian market operator. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission recently launched an inquiry into ASX after what it called repeated and serious failures that raise doubts over its ability to maintain critical trading infrastructure. "This is an unfortunate source of uncertainty," analyst Nigel Pittaway says. "It also brings with it the risk of further increased costs and capex." Citi says the ASX business is otherwise performing well with 14% growth in cash market volumes and 19% growth in futures volumes for the full year. Citi also sees some signs of life in the IPO market. It retains a A$71.60/share price target. ASX ended last week at A$69.63. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2256 GMT - The prices that Metro Mining expects to achieve for its bauxite in 3Q fall short of Shaw & Partners's expectations. Still, the bank continues to rate the company among its top emerging company picks for 2025. Metro Mining said on Friday that prices for 3Q shipments will be down on the previous quarter but in line with what was achieved in 4Q of 2024. "That is about A$5/wet metric ton lower than we had previously modelled," analyst Andrew Hines says. Still, Metro Mining will generate approximately A$60 million of free cash flow in 3Q and move to a net cash position by the end of the current quarter. "That is not reflected in the current share price," Shaw says. It retains a A$0.17/share price target. Metro Mining ended last week at A$0.069. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2221 GMT - Jefferies expects Telix Pharmaceuticals to beat FY 2025 revenue guidance, partly because it will benefit from sales of prostate cancer imaging investigational product Illuccix in some EU and Latin American countries. Analyst David Stanton says his annual revenue forecast is 4% above the top end of Telix's stated target. This is because Telix didn't include revenue from Illuccix in EU jurisdictions with no marketing authorization at that time. However, Norway, Luxembourg and Brazil issued marketing approval for Illuccix in 1Q of FY 2025. "Assuming a six-month process to receive reimbursement approval and the start of sales, we believe Telix will receive revenue from these areas in 4Q of FY 2025," Jefferies says. "We forecast this revenue contribution at A$24 million in FY 2025." ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2213 GMT - Tailwinds are strengthening for Cleanaway Waste Management. Jefferies says approval by Australia's competition regulator for the acquisition of Contract Resources happened earlier than it expected. Analyst Amit Kanwatia also thinks Cleanway is on track to achieve a goal of more than A$450 million of Ebit in FY 2026. He points to an improvement in housing approvals, with 6.1% growth in May. That provides a favorable volume environment for key landfill sites in Melbourne and Sydney, Jefferies says. "This coupled with the RBA's rate-cut cycle is expected to further support volume environment across operating businesses," Jefferies says. Its price target rises 2.2% to A$3.30/share. Cleanaway ended last week at A$2.77. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires