0432 GMT - Brambles shares still look undervalued despite the pallet supplier's series of earnings upgrades over the past 12 months, UBS analyst Andre Fromyhr says. He tells clients in a note that the stock trades at a discount to ASX-listed industrials despite a strong share-price performance. The stock is up about 25% since October. Fromyhr maintains a buy rating and A$15.90 target price on the stock, citing Brambles' pricing power, double-digit earnings growth and strong free cash flow recovery. Shares are down 0.1% at A$13.93. (stuart.condie@wsj.com; @StuartLCondie)

0208 GMT - Propel Funeral Partners' recent acquisitions look to be consistent with continuing industry consolidation of long-duration structural growth assets, say Morgan Stanley analysts in a note. The company on Monday disclosed the acquisition of Harbour City Funeral Home (Wellington) and Terry Longley & Son (Hawkes Bay) for up to A$38 million. Financially, Propel expects EPS accretion in the first year, notes MS. From this, the investment bank expects consensus upgrades to Ebitda, and says it's overweight on the stock. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

0142 GMT - ASX-listed investment manager GQG's performance history and recent flow performance relative to listed peers warrant a premium multiple for the stock, say Macquarie analysts in a note. The investment bank notes that GQG delivered 2Q FY 2023 net flows of US$1.2 billion, while also confirming that the company had a "reasonable pipeline of client demand." Macquarie currently forecasts inflows of US$2.6 billion for the remaining six months of 2023, and has an outperform call on the stock. It raises its target price 4.9% to A$2.15. GQG rises 0.5% to A$1.52. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

0048 GMT - Monash IVF should grow its share of Australia's IVF market by more than previously anticipated thanks to its acquisition of Pivet Medical Centre at the end of July, Macquarie analysts say. They see Monash increasing its share of the FY 2024 fresh-cycle market by 65 bps, compared with their previous forecast of a 40bp rise. They say in a note that 2H FY 2024 will contribute more significantly to this increase as Pivet ramps up patient recruitment. Macquarie's analysts add that Australian government statistics also show IVF treatment volumes increasing at a faster pace than they had expected. Macquarie raises the stock's target price 3.8% and maintains an outperform rating. Shares rise 0.4% at A$1.14. (stuart.condie@wsj.com; @StuartLCondie)

0038 GMT - The trajectory of an assumed margin recovery at Australia-listed imaging specialist Integral Diagnostics is hard to project, Morgan Stanley analysts say. They tell clients in a note that, while Integral Diagnostics highlighted a revenue uptick in January that could provide some margin relief amid fixed costs, the company is likely to be spending more on capex in the absence of attractive M&A opportunities. This is prudent, they observe, adding that there are also regulatory headwinds to consider. MS maintains a A$2.70 target price on the stock but cuts its recommendation to underweight from equal-weight. Shares are down 1.6% at A$3.12. (stuart.condie@wsj.com; @StuartLCondie)

0024 GMT - Margins at Ansell's healthcare business should have improved significantly in 2H but it may still be some time before they return to pre-pandemic levels, Morgan Stanley analysts say. They tell clients in a note that the protective garment and glove manufacturer's 2H healthcare EBIT margins will rise by 70 basis points on 1H to 12.7%. Margin recovery could also be supported by continual growth in sales of industrial products, they add. However, MS prefers to remain on the sidelines until Ansell has finished destocking high-cost inventory and can fully assess the underlying cost base. MS lifts target price by 17% to A$28.07. Shares are up 3.1% at A$27.19. (stuart.condie@wsj.com; @StuartLCondie)

2327 GMT -- Propel Funeral Partners, having executed on a solid M&A pipeline over the last seven months, is likely to now focus on bedding down some of these large- scale acquisitions in key markets, says Bell Potter analyst Chami Ratnapala in a note. The investment bank says this should support the business in offsetting pressures related to re-basing of volumes through 2H FY 2023 to 1Q FY 2024 as the mortality rate returns to the long-term baseline level. BP keeps its buy rating unchanged, but cuts its target price 5.1% to A$5.60/share. Propel was last down 2.1% to A$4.11/share. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires