The latest Market Talks covering the Health Care sector. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
0501 GMT - Summerset's balance sheet is once again likely to dominate investor attention when the retirement-village operator reports 1H earnings on Aug. 27, says Forsyth Barr. It thinks net debt increased by NZ$105 million to NZ$2.07 billion. Still, analyst Will Twiss expects Summerset will reiterate guidance for net debt to remain broadly flat across 2H 2026 and FY 2027. "The result will also provide an opportunity for management to explain how measures already underway (including slowing its New Zealand build rate) and potential further actions (such as selling surplus land) could result in net debt being below consensus forecasts over the next two years," Forsyth Barr adds. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
0453 GMT - Ebos's FY 2026 result was notable partly because of what it didn't include. "With the lack of another EPS downgrade, we are hopeful this result has marked the end of Ebos's downgrade cycle and investor confidence can start to rebuild," says Forsyth Barr analyst Ben Crozier. Still, Ebos hasn't delivered a return to its historic growth rate of 5%. Forsyth Barr estimates Ebos's organic growth rate in FY 2026 was 2%, largely reflecting competitive headwinds in its Community Pharmacy business. Forsyth Barr retains a neutral call on Ebos. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1455 GMT - The experimental mRNA-based vaccine from Moderna and Merck gives melanoma patients a lower risk of recurrence, Merck Research Laboratories president Dr. Dean Li tells CNBC. "Patients have a better chance of being disease-free, and for longer," Li says in an interview. The vaccine is being administered in combination with Merck's blockbuster cancer immunotherapy Keytruda to people who had surgery to remove melanoma. A late-stage study of the treatment met its goal of extending the time before cancer returns in high-risk patients. The companies aren't giving out detailed numbers from the study yet, though Li says a Phase 2 study of the treatment showed a 40% to 50% chance of having reduced risk of recurrence. Moderna shares climb 135% while Merck shares rise 11%.
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