0221 GMT - Evolution Mining seems eager to hunker down to focus on operational performance and cash generation this year, much to the delight of Citi analyst Kate McCutcheon. "No need for concern on acquisitions just yet, in our view," she says in a note following a visit to the miner's Mungari operation in Australia. She says Evolution is focused on "getting bang for your buck" at Mungari, a site it bought two years ago, although she reckons it will take several years of free cash flow from the mine to recover the acquisition price and expansion costs. Citi has a neutral rating and A$3.60/share target on the stock, which is up 0.3% at A$3.76. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0218 GMT - GUD Holdings' move to become a pure-play auto-parts supplier will lift earnings margins and lower debt, Citi analyst Sam Teeger says. Teeger tells clients in a note that GUD's divestment of its Davey water-products business should drive margin accretion of about 100 basis points at the group level. He sees net debt falling to 1.5 times annual Ebitda by the end of fiscal 2024, lower than both his prior forecast of 1.8 times Ebitda and the company's long-term target of between 1.6 and 1.9 times Ebitda. The degearing of the balance sheet helps drive a 0.8% increase in target price to A$12.79. Citi maintains a buy rating on the stock, which is down 0.3% at A$10.12. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0128 GMT - Boral's FY 2024 EBIT guidance of A$270 million-A$300 million is, at its midpoint, roughly 4% higher than consensus expectations, Citi analyst Samuel Seow says in a note. "However valuation is also materially elevated, implying the stock may have already priced this in," says Seow. He says the building-materials company's FY 2023 earnings result is solid, with EBIT about 8% above market consensus. He reckons the beat is linked to flat energy costs in Boral's 2H, which helped bolster profit margins. Seow has a sell rating and A$3.60/share target on the stock, which is up 7.2% in Sydney at A$4.685/share. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0120 GMT - The fact that QBE didn't change its FY 2023 guidance is likely to foster confidence in the insurer's near-term operating outlook, say UBS analysts in a note. On QBE's 1H results issued today, UBS notes this was the insurer's maiden result under IFRS17, which means consensus expectations are unclear on a like-for-like basis. But what the investment bank says is clear is that net profit after tax and dividend per share were both well below consensus. "DPS also reflects a very low payout ratio 35%, below the company's target range 40-60%," says UBS. However, in good news, the investment bank notes long-tail reserving was zero and catastrophe losses were in line with the recent update. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

0116 GMT - A weakening outlook for scrap prices and volumes in the year ahead prompts UBS analyst Lee Power to downgrade Sims to sell from neutral. He cuts the bank's target on the stock by 17% to A$13.60. In a note, Power says he sees "significant downside risk to FY24 consensus Ebit (UBS estimate 20% below Visible Alpha consensus) and we expect FY24 consensus Ebit to be cut by this amount at the FY23 result on the 15 August." Despite earnings headwinds, Sims is trading at a one-year forward EV/Ebit multiple of 11X, above its historical average of 10X Power adds. Sims is down 2.2% at A$14.47/share. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0045 GMT - TPG Inc.'s potential takeover of Australia's InvoCare confirms Morgan Stanley analysts' view that the funeral industry offers defensive long-term demand. The analysts tell clients in a note that the industry also offers pricing growth and further opportunities for consolidation. They point out that InvoCare's case averages remain robust despite a softer-than-expected first-half trading update. MS has a last-published equal-weight rating and A$10.25 target price on the stock. TPG's offer implies a valuation of A$12.96 a share once dividend imputation is included, they say. InvoCare's stock is up 0.2% at A$12.50. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0001 GMT - AGL Energy's annual result isn't likely to shift FY 2024 Ebitda forecasts much, Jefferies says, but its outlook commentary could still excite stock bulls. "The comments around AGL's wholesale realized pricing and the rolling 24-month average for wholesale forward curves gives some insight that management are unlikely to be seeing some recent weakness in forward pricing as overly impacting medium-term earnings," analyst Anthony Moulder says. Jefferies retains a buy call on AGL, pointing to upside to its valuation multiple as it adds more renewable energy generation capacity. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

2345 GMT - Suncorp Group could have paid a higher dividend if the proposed sale of its banking unit hadn't been blocked by Australia's competition regulator, Citi analyst Nigel Pittaway says in a note. Despite the dividend also being impacted by the current higher reinsurance costs, he notes that Suncorp remains confident it can return to its normal levels of payout in future as it expects some of the capital impacts to reverse. "This sounds plausible unless the bank sale continues to be blocked and July 1 2024 proves to be another tough reinsurance renewal," Citi says. Even so, Citi views Suncorp as having a strong return outlook and hence keeps its buy call despite the dividend disappointment. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

2325 GMT - CBA's solid market position, buoyed by a dominant share in retail banking and a growing business-banking presence, isn't without risk. "With a challenging revenue environment, inflationary pressures and early signs of deteriorating credit, it is hard to see material upside," say Barrenjoey analysts Jon Mott and Minh Pham in a note. Still, Barrenjoey views CBA's second-half result as being better than expected, with fourth-quarter net interest margin stabilization a highlight. Into the future, Barrenjoey sees NIM trends remaining soft amid ongoing competition and expects CBA's FY 2024 NIM to settle around 1.97%. It keeps its underweight call on the stock.(alice.uribe@wsj.com)

2309 GMT - CBA's consumer-banking skew leaves its earnings more exposed to sector-wide headwinds, say Goldman Sachs analysts Andrew Lyons and John Li in a note. This includes intense mortgage and deposit competition, and challenges from households experiencing higher interest burdens from interest rate hikes, they say. At the same time, the analysts reckon CBA is unlikely to escape elevated estimated FY24 cost pressures given heightened inflation. "Therefore, given we expect underlying pre-provision operating profit to cumulatively fall by 6% over FY 2024/25, and not recover to FY 2023 levels until FY 2028." Goldman cuts its target price 2.1% to A$81.63/share. CBA was last up 2.6% to A$104.85. (alice.uribe@wsj.com)

0452 GMT - Suncorp Group appears to be in a favorable position to sustain its robust profitability despite rising losses from natural catastrophes and higher reinsurance costs, says S&P Global Ratings in a note. The company continues to make progress in protecting its core insurance business amid evolving industry dynamics, it says. For FY 2023, S&P notes that Suncorp reported a strong turnaround in earnings, with a net income of A$1.15 billion, up about 69% on the prior year. "The improved result reflects higher premiums and a rebound in investment returns that collectively outweighed some large catastrophe claims," S&P says. "We view investments in technology and a refined underwriting appetite as supportive of future earnings resilience."(alice.uribe@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires