0313 GMT - Sims' reiteration of its FY26 guidance is viewed as positive in the face of declining DDR4 prices, says RBC Capital Markets. The broker says DDR4 prices were down roughly 12% on month in early May, which is viewed as a downside risk to earnings guidance for Sims' SLS division. RBC says it's currently forecasting SLS to deliver annual Ebit of A$169 million, around the lower end of Sims' guidance range. RBC has an outperform rating and A$25.75 target on the stock. Shares are up 4.3% at A$21.16. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

0216 GMT - Medical device makers ResMed and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare are best placed among Australia-listed healthcare stocks to mitigate oil-related cost increases, Morgan Stanley analysts say. They tell clients in a note that high margins and pricing power are the best defense against the impact of cost increases thrust upon companies by the Iran conflict. The investment bank's analysts says that service providers such as Ramsay Health Care and Sonic Healthcare are likely to be hit harder due to their lower margins. Their pricing power is lower because they rely on government and health-insurance income, the analysts add. ([email protected])

0146 GMT - Westpac's first-half result raises questions for its bears at Morgan Stanley on the tradeoff between lending volumes and margins. Westpac's mortgage growth accelerated to 1.2 times that of the overall market in its fiscal first half, but MS analysts wonder whether if it isn't time for it to slow down. The tell clients in a note that net interest income fell 0.5% over the period and that margins declined at all four of Westpac's divisions. With credit quality declining amid pressures created by the Iran conflict, the analysts assume Westpac will have to further top up its collective provisioning in the second half. MS cuts its target price 1.2% to A$34.00 and stays underweight on the stock, which is up 4.4% at A$39.28. ([email protected])

0108 GMT - Westpac's first-half result lends more credence to the idea that the Australian banking sector's best days are in the past for now, Macquarie analysts say. Putting Westpac's result alongside those from rivals ANZ and NAB, the analysts see risks building as higher interest rates and a softer economy lead to slowing volumes. Intensifying competition in lending and deteriorating credit quality are concerns, they add. There were few surprises for the analysts in Westpac's result, although they call out weakening revenue trends and an underlying margin decline through the half. Macquarie cuts its target price 3.1% to A$31.00 and keeps an underperform rating on the stock, which is up 4.2% at A$39.19. ([email protected])

0106 GMT - Individually, Regis Resources and Vault Minerals screen among the cheapest and highest yielding mid-cap producers in UBS's ASX gold coverage. Combined, the companies--which announced a planned merger--will be well-placed to fund organic growth, pursue M&A and maintain material capital returns, UBS says. It retains buy ratings on both Regis and Vault, which it says were trading at a discount of 18% and 49%, respectively, versus UBS's NPV estimates before the deal. UBS has an A$8.75 target on Regis, which trades down 7.9% at A$6.22. It has a A$7.05 target on Vault, which is down 7.8% at A$4.28.([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

0052 GMT - WiseTech Global's reaffirmed earnings guidance gives its bull at Jefferies some comfort that the logistics-software provider's margins are on track to recover by fiscal 2028. Analyst Roger Samuel tells clients in a note that the guidance and new visibility on restructuring costs suggests the Australian company is on the right trajectory for a fiscal 2028 Ebitda margin of more than 50%. He also reckons that the risk of DSV moving business away from WiseTech's CargoWise platform appears to be abating. Even if the Danish freight-forwarder moves volumes in house, Samuel says the process could take six years or more. Jefferies keeps a buy rating and A$72.00 target price on the stock, which is up 1.5% at A$46.45. ([email protected])

0028 GMT - WiseTech Global's bull at Bell Potter expects to learn the cost of the logistics-software provider's 2,000 job cuts in August. Analyst Chris Savage reckons the Australian company will probably disclose the financial hit some time around its annual result announcement. He assumes the cost will be split across FY 2026 and FY 2027 and is looking forward to getting some detail. For now, one-off restructuring costs implied by WiseTech's underlying earnings guidance are slightly higher than Savage had anticipated. However, he keeps a buy rating and A$78.75 target price on the stock, which is up 0.2% at A$45.82. ([email protected])

2355 GMT - Ampol is generating so much cash right now that it weakens the case for the Australian fuel refiner and marketer raising equity, signals Jefferies. Its estimates imply Ampol will generate almost A$400 million of additional cash in 1H from strong refining margins and one-off trading profits in the international arm of its Fuel & Infrastructure business. "This is well in excess of the A$250 million proposed equity issuance to fund the EG acquisition and Ampol has the option to settle with cash," analyst Michael Simotas says. "We expect leverage to remain at or below the bottom of the target range in 2027." Jefferies has a buy call on Ampol. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2344 GMT - Investors have more than priced in short-term pain to Flight Centre's stock, says Jefferies. Flight Centre's shares are down more than 30% since the start of 2026. Investors turned skittish after the Middle East conflict upended travel plans. Still, Flight Centre has stuck with annual profit guidance even though its Leisure business took an around A$10 million hit to earnings in April. Flight Centre's key May-June period is ahead. "We now forecast FY 2026 pretax profit of A$316 million, which is the bottom end of guidance and would imply 7% pretax profit growth in 4Q," analyst Michael Simotas says. "We assume challenges persist into FY 2027." Jefferies cuts its price target by 14% to A$15.00/share and retains a buy call. Flight Centre ended Tuesday at A$10.59. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2337 GMT - Dexus's 3Q update cements Jefferies's view that there is better risk-reward elsewhere among Australian property stocks. Dexus signaled earnings aren't likely to reach a bottom in FY 2026. CEO Ross Du Vernet said FY 2027 is likely to be more challenging, with performance fees and trading profits contributing less to earnings than in FY 2026. Analyst Andrew Dodds points out that adjusted funds from operations per share have fallen by 15% since FY 2022 when using the midpoint of current guidance. "Our revised FY 2027 estimates imply a peak-to-trough decline of 22%," Jefferies says. Its AFFO forecast for FY 2027 was already 3% below consensus. Following the 3Q update, Jefferies cuts it by a further 1%. It retains a hold call on Dexus. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2330 GMT - Lottery Corp's licence extension in Australia's Victoria state results in "the downgrade we had to have," says Jefferies analyst Kai Erman. Lottery Corp has secured a 40-year extension of its lottery licence in Victoria. Jefferies says this security is positive. Still, Lottery Corp paid A$1.15 billion to extend the licence. Jefferies downgrades its FY 2027 EPS forecast by 14%, citing higher net invested capital and amortization. It retains a hold call on Lottery Corp's stock. "At 18x FY 2027 Ebitda we remain sidelined on valuation grounds and lack of clarity on incremental earnings opportunities beyond portfolio improvements which have been a feature since demerger" from Tabcorp, Jefferies says. Lottery Corp ended Tuesday at A$5.57.([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires