0056 GMT - The steep selloff in A2 Milk that followed China's annual population assessment feeds into Forsyth Barr's bearish view of the stock. A2 Milk shares dropped more than 10% after China said births fell to 7.92 million in 2025, from 9.54 million a year earlier. Analyst Matt Montgomerie said births were 11% below his expectations. While the selloff in A2 Milk may appear harsh, it's "important to recognize the lagged impact of new births on infant formula sales (over two thirds of revenue is in Stage 3 product and beyond [babies aged 12 months plus])," Forsyth Barr says. It signals China's fertility policies have had a limited impact. Forsyth Barr says it reduces the probability of near-term earnings upside. "A2 Milk moves from trading at very expensive to merely expensive valuation levels," it adds. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 19, 2026 19:56 ET (00:56 GMT)

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