0133 GMT - Megaport's bull at Morgans sees potential for the stock to further rerate as it proves the value added through its recently acquired compute-as-a-service platform. Maintaining a buy rating on the stock, analyst Nick Harris tells clients in a note that he sees margin improvement as another potential catalyst for shares of the Australia-listed connectivity services provider. He raises his Ebitda targets by 22% for fiscal 2027 and by 15% for fiscal 2028, citing lower operating-cost expectations on the fiscal 2026 exit margin implied by guidance. Morgans raises its target price 3.2% to A$16.00. Shares are up 7.2% at A$7.91. ([email protected])

0040 GMT - Domino's Pizza Enterprises served up some positives in its 1H result, but the decline in same-store sales growth is severe, says Jefferies. Domino's share price falls 14% to A$18.61 today, reaching its lowest level in four months. Analyst Michael Simotas says the company is doing what it promised. It has reduced costs and limited discounting to restore unit economics and has reduced its debt. Franchisee profitability has lifted demonstrably, although it's well below where it needs to be, Jefferies says. "Questions remain about whether growth can be restored, and very weak same-store sales growth may spook the market," Jefferies says. It had a buy call and A$30.00/share price target on Domino's ahead of today's result. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0038 GMT - The share price of Woolworths rises 9.6% to A$34.58 and a new 18-month high following a 1H result that comfortably beat consensus hopes. Jefferies analyst Michael Simotas says sales momentum improved through 1H, and a very strong trading update suggests Woolworths has regained sales leadership over Coles. "Margin was strong, which we attribute to cost out and strong supplier support and outlook commentary suggests low-mid single digit consensus upgrades," Jefferies says. It had a buy call and A$28.50/share-price target on Woolworths ahead of its 1H result today. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0029 GMT - Jarden is already looking beyond today's earnings from Amplitude Energy to drilling results at the Isabella prospect in southeastern Australia, which are due imminently. Amplitude experienced a setback when an earlier exploration well at the adjacent Elanora prospect didn't turn up commercial quantities of natural gas. So, the market is looking for a positive result at Isabella. Jarden values the prospect at A$0.68/share on an unrisked basis. "The outcome will also likely impact market confidence in the remainder of the drilling program, potentially amplifying the share price reaction to success or failure at Isabella," analyst Nik Burns says. Amplitude is up 0.5% at A$2.22. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0026 GMT - Flight Centre's 1H result should shore up confidence among investors in the Australian travel agency's outlook, says Jarden. Flight Centre's pretax profit represented a 4% beat to consensus forecasts. Both of the company's operating divisions outperformed expectations. Flight Centre reaffirmed annual guidance for an underlying pretax profit of A$315 million-A$350 million, representing growth of 15% at the midpoint. "Given the 1H beat, strong start to 2H (record January Leisure profit) and easier 2H comparisons, we expect market will have greater confidence in guidance," analyst Ben Gilbert says. "We see risk increasingly looking more weighted to the upside." Flight Centre is down 2.4% at A$12.96. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0019 GMT - Are market forecasts for Woodside Energy too conservative? Morgans analyst Adrian Prendergast thinks so. He points out that Woodside just declared a final dividend of US$0.59/share that is more than the US$0.55/share payout that the market expects for all of 2026. There are challenges ahead, including a turnaround of the Pluto LNG facility and output from the Sangomar oil-project starting to decline. "How Pluto performs post turnaround, and Sangomar behaves once it starts to decline, are both uncertainties that in our view are driving Woodside's conservative guidance of 172 million-186 million BOE," Morgans says. "But also sets up potential for a subsequent upgrade if Woodside gains confidence during 1H." ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

0003 GMT - Weak Australian advertising markets keep UBS analysts cautious on Nine Entertainment despite what they see as strong cost control at the media conglomerate. The UBS analysts tell clients in a note that 1H Ebitda was about 5% higher than they had anticipated thanks to lower-than-expected costs. However, they think a low valuation multiple of four times Ebitda is justifiable given ad markets remain short and near-term visibility is low. They add that the overall macro backdrop also looks likely to be a headwind as interest rates move higher amid already subdued consumer confidence. UBS keeps a neutral rating on the stock and cuts its target price 7.4% to A$1.13. Shares are down 0.5% at A$1.06. ([email protected])

2329 GMT - While Fortescue's Alta Copper acquisition helps to diversify its commodity mix in the long term, iron-ore demand remains the key near-term catalyst for its stock, Jefferies analyst Mitch Ryan says in a note. In Fortescue's 1H results, the miner says it expects to finalize the takeover of Alta shortly. "Alta constitutes a porphyry Peruvian Cu-Au [copper-gold] project which we believe could enter production in the early-mid 2030s at attractive capital intensity," says Jefferies' Ryan. The miner provides no material operational updates and reaffirms guidance in its 1H result, Ryan notes. Jefferies has an underperform rating and A$17.20 target on Fortescue. Shares are up 3.0% at A$20.80. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

2318 GMT - Fortescue's higher-than-expected interim dividend more than offsets a softer-than-anticipated 1H profit, RBC Capital Markets says in a note. The profit miss is due to higher depreciation, as well as interest and tax, says the broker. But "the dividend outcome is the message," says RBC, adding that "balance sheet strength and cash flow resilience allows FMG to sustain attractive distribution even amid higher capital intensity." RBC has a sector perform rating and A$23.00 target on the stock. Fortescue is up 3.2% at A$20.85. ([email protected])

(END) Dow Jones Newswires