The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
2012 ET - Japanese stocks are higher due to eased fears about the Fed's potential rate increases and gains in U.S. technology stocks overnight. Chip and other electronics shares are leading gains. Advantest is up 6.2%, Kioxia Holdings is 6.0% higher and Murata Manufacturing is up 6.2%. The dollar is at 159.33 yen, compared with Y159.40 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are closely watching any developments in the Iran conflict and crude oil prices. The Nikkei Stock Average is up 1.8% at 68745.28. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com; @kosakunarioka)
1956 ET - Australian stocks look set to edge lower at the open as more of the country's best-known companies report earnings. Local stock futures are down by 0.3% ahead of Thursday's session, suggesting that the S&P/ASX 200 could be on track for a second straight decline. The benchmark index is coming off a 0.45% fall and is down by 0.6% so far this week, albeit still up by 2.6% in August. Ahead of the open, telecommunications provider Telstra lifted its dividend and announced a further 1.0 billion Australian dollars on-market buyback. Treasury Wine Estates posted a A$1.08 billion annual loss on U.S. asset impairments, and ANZ bank reported an unaudited third-quarter cash profit of A$1.90 billion. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
1942 ET - Japanese stocks may rise thanks to eased fears about the Fed's rate increases and gains in U.S. technology stocks overnight. Nikkei futures are up 1.2% at 68500 on the SGX. The dollar is at 159.34 yen, compared with Y159.40 as of Wednesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are focusing on any developments in the Iran conflict and crude oil prices. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.8% to 67524.06 on Wednesday. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com)
1729 ET - Cisco Systems guides for revenue of between $72.2 billion and $73.4 billion in fiscal year 2027, representing between 14% and 16% growth compared with its fiscal year 2026 revenue of $63.33 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet are currently expecting fiscal 2027 revenue of $69.12 billion. Revenue grew 12% from fiscal 2025 to fiscal 2026, the company says. Shares are down 4.3% after-hours. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)Apotex's U.S. segment is a weak spot in its public market debut, as increased market competition and an operational plant pause weigh on revenue. Excluding last year's generic revlimid windfall, underlying U.S. sales slipped 8.6% to C$362.9 million, with the drop worsening to a steep 48.5% on a reported basis. Apotex cites fresh competition following lost exclusivities on key drugs including leukemia treatment nilotinib, alongside a temporary halt on U.S.-bound eye drop shipments for Richmond Hill plant remediation. CEO Jeff Watson says on the earnings call that the company expects to be ready for FDA re-inspection by the end of the calendar year. The U.S. performance contrasts with Canada's 11.5% sales rise. Shares are down 4.2% to C$35.13. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1442 ET - Apotex shrugs off concerns over potential U.S. tariffs on generic drugs, pointing to its massive Canadian manufacturing setup as a shield. CEO Jeff Watson says on the earnings call that Apotex benefits from "significant North American manufacturing footprint with the majority of our U.S. farm products produced in Canada," adding that management is actively lobbying trade officials on a "North American onshoring initiative that we share with both the U.S. and Canadian governments." Executive Christine Batur says there is a "unique recognition of Canada as part of the solution," giving the company a "good potential advantage" over global rivals. Apotex is also expanding its U.S. footprint through a new partnership with Halo Pharmaceutical to fund sterile injectable capacity in New Jersey. Shares are down 4.7% to C$35.32. (adriano.marchese@wsj.com)
1430 ET - July fitness data points to continued stability at Planet Fitness, while supporting a bullish view on Life Time Group, according to Jefferies in a research note. Planet Fitness foot traffic rose around 1% in July, about the same as June, while web visits climbed around 33% last month following a 36% rise in June, the analysts say. "2Q showed the business holding its shape with the guide intact and no negative 2H comp," the analysts add. Life Time web traffic increased about 32% in July following a 31% rise in June, and Jefferies says its 2Q results showed continued productivity gains from pricing, mix improvement and higher member engagement. These trends, along with other positives, should provide "a long runway for earnings growth & multiple expansion," the analysts say. (anvee.bhutani@wsj.com)
1410 ET - Quantinuum's deal with Oracle is a vote of confidence for the quantum computing company's potential path toward commercialization, and contributed to a projection of revenue upside in 2027, Morgan Stanley analysts write in a note. Support from the U.S. government may serve as an additional tailwind, they write. But the central story is Quantinuum's path toward launching its next-generation quantum computers in 2027 and 2029, they write. "The quarter was encouraging, but it does not materially change the long term investment debate," the analysts write. Shares surge 24%. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1322 ET - Quantinuum's deal to deploy its Helios quantum computer in an Oracle data center underscores a trend toward solutions that blend quantum computing with other technologies, Quantinuum CEO Raj Hazra tells CNBC. "Quantum computing is not going to be used in isolation," he says. The best use cases for quantum, he adds, are "only going to happen when you put quantum computing and high-performance computing and AI together." The integration at both the hardware and software levels gives customers and developers easy use of the quantum computer, and should "stoke usage, demand, and adoption of quantum computing," Hazra says. Quantinuum surges 23%. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1301 ET - CoreWeave is arguing that its scale means new deployments are no longer overshadowed by its "ramp drag," Stifel analysts say in a note, adding that the 2Q print provides early evidence for this view. "The company energized its largest-ever tranche of capacity and still expanded margin sequentially, which is the opposite of the pattern in F4Q25 and F1Q26," the analysts say, adding that the company expects sequential margin expansion through the rest of the year. Still, they note, the 2Q was boosted by a confluence of tailwinds, including growth in the higher-margin services layer, more shorter-duration and higher-priced contracts, and prior-generation fleet economics. CoreWeave surges 20%.(elias.schisgall@wsj.com)
1240 ET - Novo Nordisk's search for small deals to bolster its drug pipeline looks sensible, Berenberg analysts say. The Danish drugmaker's CEO seems bullish on the prospects for the obesity-pill market, but Novo Nordisk might need deals to add more oral medicines to maintain its lead, according to Berenberg. Novo Nordisk needs to diversify from semaglutide--the key ingredient in its blockbuster drugs Ozempic and Wegovy for diabetes and obesity--and its strong balance sheet allows it to do so, the analysts say. "As such, small molecule-focused business development seems likely," the analysts add. Berenberg cuts its recommendation on Novo Nordisk's stock to hold from buy, trimming its target price to 305 Danish kroner from 325 kroner. Shares close 2.5% lower at 299.50 kroner. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)
1238 ET - Pandora's guidance raise and better-than-expected results for the second quarter will be well received by the market, RBC Capital Markets' Piral Dadhania says in a research note. The guidance raise from the Danish jeweler was partly driven by a technical adjustment due to the benefit from U.S. tariff refunds, but also reflects better underlying trends, the analyst says. The update pointed to a strong performance in the third quarter to date, with retail like-for-like sales in the mid-single-digit percentage range, helped by the timing of July inventory-clearance activities, the analyst adds. The positive results might help build confidence in the changes Pandora put in place under new CEO Berta de Pablos-Barbier, according to RBC.
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