OUR QUEST IS NOT TO BE BULLISH OR BEARISH, BUT TO CORRECTLY ASSESS FUTURE TRENDS

UBS rates APE as Neutral

UBS cuts its target for Eagers Automotive by -95c to $22.00 from $22.95 and retains a Neutral rating, following interim results.

A stronger-than-expected delivery of order-bank vehicles in 1H26 is expected to be partly offset in 2H26, with higher Toyota volumes largely compensating for the earlier pull-forward.

First-half revenue of $8.1bn and underlying profit (PBT) of $250m beat the broker's forecasts by 5% and 6%, respectively.

Growth was driven by BYD, easyauto123 and CanadaOne, while the analysts estimate core portfolio profit (PBT) fell around -25%.

Commentary adds August data showed BYD deliveries rising 69%, but the core portfolio contracted -15% for its 17th consecutive month.

Forecasting another interest rate rise in November, UBS remains vigilant around the potential negative wealth effect impact as property prices fall.

Citi rates ASB as Buy

Citi believes US-based Wildcat Infrastructure's potential interest in Austal supports a case for a higher takeover valuation.

Hanwha's effective 19.9% interest, including its swap exposure, represents a significant hurdle to any competing proposal, the analyst points out. However, its ability to vote on a Wildcat-led transaction remains unclear to Citi.

Hanwha is seen as the more logical buyer because its extensive shipbuilding expertise could help accelerate US naval shipbuilding capacity. On the flipside, Hanwha's defence experience has largely been confined to Korea rather than the US.

The broker believes Wildcat's engagement reinforces the strategic value of Austal's assets and suggests Hanwha's proposal attributes too little value to the Australasian operations.

Unchanged Buy rating and $5.75 target.

Macquarie rates STO as Outperform

Macquarie details ExxonMobil will become the operator of Papua LNG and Santos will take a higher stake of 21% post the equity adjustment with the most likely outcome being a final investment decision by December 15.

The ongoing Iran/US conflict serves up a supportive macro backdrop while ExxonMobil moving to operator is viewed as reducing the execution risks.

The PNG government has also linked a revised fiscal package to a decision by December 15.

Total capex for the project has been confirmed by TotalEnergies of around US$14bn with circa US$4bn in cost savings achieved since 2024, which aligns with commentary from Santos and the analyst's expectations.

Outperform rated with a higher target of $9.25, up 1%.