The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.
2139 ET - Maiden output from Woodside Energy's Scarborough natural-gas project in Australia is the major swing factor for the company's 2H production, Macquarie says. Woodside has signaled it will ship a first cargo of liquefied natural gas from Scarborough some time between October and December. Macquarie forecasts production of some 900,000 tons of LNG from Scarborough in 4Q, but acknowledges limited visibility currently. Macquarie has a neutral call on Woodside and raises its price target by 1.5% to A$32.90/share to reflect stronger oil and LNG commodities price forecasts. Woodside is unchanged at A$31.48. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2136 ET - Amplitude Energy's decision to move ahead with the East Coast Supply Project represents another positive step, says Euroz Hartleys. The final investment decision on the ECSP is "a major derisking milestone," analyst Declan Bonnick says. Amplitude has also provided greater visibility around the scope of the project, the development schedule and costs. First output of natural gas from the ECSP is forecast in 2028. "The A$190 million-A$210 million development cost remains consistent with prior capex expectations and appears in-line with consensus," Euroz Hartleys says. It has a buy call and A$2.80/share price target on Amplitude, which is down 1.8% at A$1.685. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2135 ET - REA Group's CEO appears to be sticking to the acquisition playbook he followed with his previous employer, Citi analyst Siraj Ahmed says. The Australian real-estate advertiser's acquisition of a 35% stake in Ireland-based marketplace operator Distilled looks to Ahmed like the approach that CEO McIntyre took at CAR Group. Ahmed explains in a note that an initial minority stake in an international business could be followed by majority ownership or a full acquisition. If News Corp-controlled REA heads down this path, Ahmed expects it to eventually spin out Distilled's non-property verticals. Citi keeps a neutral rating on the stock and cuts its target price 14% to 165.00 Australian dollars. News Corp is the parent company of Dow Jones & Co., publisher of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2113 ET - Navigator Global Investments' sale of an equity stake in Invictus Capital prompts little reaction from its bull at Macquarie. The transaction will generate initial proceeds of at least US$40 million for the Australian alternative-asset manager. However, a note from one of the investment bank's analysts highlights how hard it is to assess the full value of a broader transaction that includes earnouts, two continuing income streams related to Invictus, and a remaining ownership stake that will generate earnings through FY 2031. Macquarie keeps an outperform rating on the stock and a target price of 3.24 Australian dollars. Shares are down 0.4% at A$2.46. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2112 ET - SD Guthrie's renewable energy joint venture could provide steady recurring income, following its agreement to supply power to a U.S. technology company's data centers for 21 years, says Maybank IB analyst Ong Chee Ting in a note. The project will involve a solar plant with a minimum capacity of 680MW and a battery-storage system, with operations targeted for 2029. SD Guthrie could recognize 23 million-31 million ringgit in annual recurring income from 2029, equivalent to 3%-6% of its 500 million-700 million ringgit recurring income target from new businesses, he reckons. Maybank maintains a buy rating on SD Guthrie and keeps its target price at 7.10 ringgit. Shares are 0.5% lower at 6.13 ringgit.(yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2104 ET - Tenaga Nasional's absorption of an estimated 120 million-150 million ringgit in fuel surcharges for September-December 2026 could be manageable and non-recurring, Hong Leong IB analyst Daniel Wong says in a note. The costs stem from the government's decision to raise the threshold for fuel surcharges and other electricity charges to 800kWh a month from 600kWh. The utility could remain well positioned to benefit from strong data center demand, with potential power-supply commitments reaching about 13GW as of June, he says. Grid upgrades and new generation capacity should support rising demand, while major investments are expected in 2027-2030, he adds. Wong sees the recent share-price sell-off as an attractive entry point. Hong Leong maintains its buy rating and 18.15 ringgit target price. Shares are 0.6% higher at 12.80 ringgit. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2042 ET - Megaport's bull at Macquarie recommends investors drop any resistance to the compute-as-a-service provider's strong momentum. One of the investment bank's analysts tells clients in a note that the Australian company's reallocation of pooled processors to a new contracts highlights management's focus on returns. They explain that the customer's A$282 million prepayment gives Megaport a capex payback period of about eight months, compared with between 16 and 22 months for pooled capacity. This reduces utilization and funding risk, the analyst adds. Macquarie keeps an outperform rating on the stock and raises its target price 8.4% to 34.70 Australian dollars. Shares are down 0.5% at A$20.525. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
2028 ET - Japanese stocks are higher after oil prices fell overnight, easing concerns about rising inflation and fast-paced rate increases by global central banks. Chip-related, banking and metals stocks are leading gains. Tokyo Electron Ltd. is up 3.6%, SoftBank Group is 3.8% higher, Mizuho Financial Group is up 2.5% and Sumitomo Metal Mining is 3.8% higher. The dollar is at 157.33 yen, compared with Y157.34 as of Tuesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are closely watching developments in the Middle East, crude oil prices and bond yields. The Nikkei Stock Average is 1.5% higher at 66460.68. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com; @kosakunarioka)
1946 ET - Japanese stocks may rise after oil prices fell overnight, easing fears about rising inflation and fast-paced rate increases by global central banks. Nikkei futures are up 0.9% at 66350 on the SGX. The dollar is at 157.41 yen, compared with Y157.34 as of Tuesday's Tokyo stock market close. Investors are focusing on developments in the Middle East, crude oil prices and bond yields. The Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.6% to 65481.27 on Tuesday. (kosaku.narioka@wsj.com)
1854 ET - Australian stocks look set for an uncertain start to Wednesday's session after U.S. indices sank amid falling consumer confidence. ASX futures are down by less than 0.1% ahead of the open, suggesting that the S&P/ASX 200 could stall after adding 0.5% across two narrow gains so far this week. The benchmark index is 4.0% lower in September and on course to round out its largest monthly decline since March, when it tumbled 7.8% on the initial impacts of the Middle East conflict. Ahead of the open, Liontown said its board had approved the US$272 million expansion of its Kathleen Valley lithium mine. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
1654 ET - The decision to push ahead with phase two of the Canada LNG operation in Western Canada is a sign the country is again building big, Prime Minister Mark Carney says. He tells an audience that the more than C$30 billion investment to double LNG production will make LNG Canada the second-largest facility of its kind in the world. It also will create some 4,000 jobs at the peak of construction, he adds. will create over thousands of new jobs. And the Shell-led venture's final investment decision, TC Energy will move ahead with a multi-billion-dollar second phase of the Coastal GaslLink pipeline, which Carney says will create more than 2,000 jobs. Shell CEO Wael Sawan says the investment go-ahead reflects confidence in Canada as a place to invest and do business for the long-term. (robb.stewart@wsj.com; @RobbMStewart)
1458 ET - OpenAI is adding plug-in extensions to its AI models to help customers distribute their products more. App makers can build directly into ChatGPT and Codex, Chief Executive Sam Altman says during OpenAI's Development Day. Apps can also be discovered through the models, so when a user asks a question, ChatGPT can recognize if a plug-in would be helpful and suggest it. Users can also use the tokens they pay for through a ChatGPT subscription to use other company's programs, so businesses don't have to cover the cost of users' tokens, Altman says.
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