0344 GMT - Whitehaven Coal could enjoy a large tailwind from rising coal prices on the Middle East conflict, says Ord Minnett analyst Tim Elder. The broker upgrades its recommendation on the stock to buy from accumulate and lifts its price target to A$9.80 from A$9.40. Elder says the conflict is creating risks for energy supply. He highlights a 12% increase in thermal-coal futures "on the expectation of a shortfall in supply." There could be "increasing supply risks if the conflict is drawn out," he adds. Roughly 36% of Whitehaven's revenue comes from thermal-coal exports, says Elder. The stock is up 0.7% at A$8.25. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
0312 GMT - Endeavour Group's decision to stop publishing quarterly updates cheers its bull at Citi, where analyst Sam Teeger welcomes a reduction in noise around short-term trading. Broadly speaking, he sees no surprises in the alcohol and hospitality retailer's first-half result, much of which had already been disclosed to the market. With management flagging a focus on pricing, Teeger thinks first-half margin compression of 84 basis points makes the consensus forecast for second-half compression of 61 basis points look overly optimistic. He sees 70 basis points as a more likely move. Citi has a last-published buy rating and a A$4.10 target price on the stock, which is down 5.3% at A$3.77. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
0218 GMT - Life360's bull at Citi is intrigued by management's comment that the tracking-app developer has a history of over delivering. Analyst Siraj Ahmed mulls the implications of the comment after the company issued annual subscription revenue guidance that he sees as conservative. He tells clients in a note that markets are likely waiting on 1Q or 2Q updates for valuation signals. Ahmed observes that growth remains steady in Life360's key revenue-generating regions, including the U.S. market. Citi has a last-published buy rating and a $68.75 target price on Life360's U.S.-listed stock, which closed down 18% at $43.97. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
0152 GMT - Life360's 2026 guidance looks solid to its bulls at Canaccord Genuity. The CG analysts acknowledge the prospect of quarterly variability on the tracking-app developer's investment cadence and exit from physical retail stores, but keep a buy rating on the stock. They point to a $640 million-$680 million revenue guidance range that comfortably straddles prior consensus of $652 million despite softer-than-expected hardware sales. The recent pullback in Life360 shares should be seen as an opportunity to gain exposure to accelerating subscriber growth, improving monetization and margin expansion, they add. CG lowers its target price 18% to $94.00 on a lower revenue multiple. U.S.-listed shares closed down 18% at $43.97. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2326 GMT -- TPG Telecom's status as a well-run telecommunications provider isn't enough to make it one of Morgan Stanley's preferred sector picks. MS analysts raise their annual Ebitda forecasts through 2028 on tweaks to operating-expense and gross-margin assumptions, but still see the stock as overvalued. They tell clients in a note that they continue to prefer both Telstra for its defensive qualities and rising dividend, and Aussie Broadband for potential capital growth. MS keeps a A$3.50 target price on the stock, which is down 0.1% at A$4.045. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2325 GMT - Bannerman Energy's deal with China National Nuclear Corp. likely reduces the size of any future equity raising to fund its Etango uranium project in Namibia, Macquarie says. CNNC is investing US$321 million to acquire a 42.75% effective interest in the Etango project. Macquarie had thought Bannerman would need to raise A$400 million at an average issue price of A$3.50/share. It now assumes Bannerman raises A$120 million at A$4.50/share. Macquarie also points out that CNNC already owns 68.82% of the Rossing uranium mine and 25% of the Langer Heinrich mine in Namibia. "We expect to see some synergies in adding Etango to the CNNC Namibia portfolio (eg, acid costs)," Macquarie says. It has an outperform call on Bannerman, and cuts its price target by 4% to A$5.60/share. Bannerman is down 8% at A$4.41 today. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2311 EGMT - For investors seeking exposure to uranium mining, there are lower-risk options than Boss Energy. That's the view of Macquarie after Boss reported a A$7.3 million loss in 1H. The outcome represented a sizeable miss to Macquarie's estimates, although this largely reflected accounting approaches. Macquarie says Boss Energy is "a complicated proposition" for investors. Boss has experienced setbacks at its Honeymoon uranium mine in South Australia and Macquarie highlights risks around the so-called wide spacing trials planned by the company to improve performance. "We believe investors should wait to see more definitive results from wider spaced leach trials first before making an investment decision," Macquarie says. It retains an underperform call on Boss Energy's stock. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2309 GMT - Life360's bull at Bell Potter is "at a loss" to explain the negative market reaction to the tracking-app provider's annual result. The only reason that analyst Chris Savage can conjure is the dual-listed company's guidance for 2026 earnings to be skewed toward the second half. Even so, Savage tells clients in a note that Life360 has a strong track record of meeting or exceeding its guidance. Accordingly, he forecasts very strong earnings growth in the December half. Savage raises his 2026 and 2027 revenue forecasts by about 1%, but lowers his valuation multiples to reflect broader weakness in tech stocks. Bell Potter trims its target price on Life360's Australia-listed stock by 3.6% to A$40.00 and maintains a buy rating. Shares are up 3.1% at A$20.99. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2308 GMT - Royalty revenue flowing to Neuren Pharmaceuticals from U.S. sales of the Daybue treatment for Rett Syndrome last year beat Macquarie's expectations. Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Neuren's partner, said U.S. net sales of Daybue totaled US$391 million in 2025. That was above the US$350 million of sales achieved in 2024. Macquarie says the sales outcome translates to A$65.0 million in royalties for Neuren, up 15% on year. This is 1.5% higher than its forecast of A$64.0 million. "Royalty revenue ahead of expectations, driven by growth in new patient prescriptions," Macquarie says. "Neuren's strong cash position enables pipeline acceleration, potentially providing significant long-term upside." It has an outperform call on Neuren. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2302 GMT - The strategic rationale of luxury car dealer Autosports's latest acquisition is compelling, Canaccord Genuity says. Autosports is buying Solitaire Automotive Group, which operates multiple dealerships in Adelaide and generates A$300 million in annual revenue. Analyst James Ferrier says Autosports is entering a new market at scale. It also becomes the sole dealer of several luxury brands as a result of the deal. Canaccord upgrades its EPS forecasts by 0-5% in FY 2026-2028. "The Solitaire transaction adds further evidence to a trend of acceleration in dealership acquisition activity for Autosports," Canaccord says. "We see upside risk to consensus in the outer years and we believe the valuation remains very attractive." It retains a buy call on Autosports and lifts its price target by 1% to A$4.84/share. Autosports ended Tuesday at A$2.86. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2258 GMT - ALS's bull at Bell Potter is excited by the exploration budgets of global miners and their mid-cap counterparts. Analyst Joseph House says exploration spending by these companies could rise by 26% this year. "For context, we have not seen this level of growth since 2021-2022," Bell Potter says. "Majors have historically comprised 60-80% of total geochemistry samples processed through the cycle." The bank points out that revenue from ALS's Commodities business rose by more than 30% annually in 2021-2022. Sample volume growth peaked at more than 30%. "Geochemistry sample volume growth was low double-digit in 1H FY26 (six months ending September 30), with an acceleration into period-end," Bell Potter says. Its price target rises 12% to A$28.00/share. ALS ended Tuesday at A$25.59. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2203 GMT - The share-price fall that met Life360's annual result is seen at Jefferies as an over-reaction to temporary softness at the start of the new fiscal year. Analyst Roger Samuel sees limited revenue impact from softer January-quarter international user growth, and tells clients in a note that there are good reasons for the accompanying margin compression. Samuel points to ad spending during the Superbowl and Winter Olympics, plus discounting of pet tracker devices. Both moves are geared at driving paid subscription growth, he adds. Jefferies keeps a buy rating on Life360's Australia-listed stock and trims its target price 6.1% to A$31.00. Shares are at A$20.36 ahead of the open. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
0445 GMT - Metals and mining stocks should continue to outperform due to the war in Iran, Jefferies says. The conflict creates supply chain risks and could raise mining cost curves due to higher energy prices, it says. There could also be a need to stockpile some minerals, including copper, in case the conflict escalates, Jefferies says. Even if there is a quick resolution, geopolitical risk will likely remain elevated while the dollar could weaken again--positive tailwinds for commodities. If the conflict is prolonged, it risks stoking inflation and could result in more metals demand for artillery and reconstruction, says Jefferies. "The bottom line is that we reiterate our bullish view on the sector, with Freeport, Glencore, Anglo American and possibly Alcoa (depending on duration of the war) as top picks," it says. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
0357 GMT - Transurban's premium valuation seems justified by the toll-road operator's relatively stable cash flows and likely yield, Jarden analyst Tom Beadle says. He tells clients in a note that his forecast for a rise in five-year interest costs to A$1.31 billion reflects refinancing risks, but acknowledges that it's possible he's being conservative. He points out that Transurban has historically been proactive in refinancing debt when conditions are favorable, and that his forecast is above consensus. Jarden keeps a neutral rating on the stock and trims its target price by 0.7% to A$13.50. Shares are down 0.3% at A$14.48. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 03, 2026 23:02 ET (04:02 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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