The latest Market Talks covering Equities. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires throughout the day.

Refining margins are likely to remain elevated for some time, benefiting Viva Energy, says Jefferies. That's because it will be a while before crude oil and oil product supply normalizes and inventories are replenished, analyst Michael Simotas says. "Notably, U.S. oil sanctions waiver this week allows Iran to transact in U.S. dollars (expires 21 August)," Jefferies says. This likely reduces the discount for Iranian crude that Chinese refineries have been purchasing. "We believe this is positive for regional refining margins," Jefferies says. It estimates Viva Energy's Geelong Refining Margin at US$14.60 per barrel in 2H, below market consensus expectations of US$16.00 per barrel. Jefferies retains a hold call on Viva Energy. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1903 ET - Australian shares are set to open higher despite tech-led declines by major U.S. indices. Local equities futures are up by 0.4% ahead of Wednesday's session, suggesting that the S&P/ASX 200 will bounce after a run of four straight declines. The benchmark index is coming off a 0.3% slip on weakness in materials stocks. U.S. indices fell sharply amid fears about the sustainability of the artificial-intelligence boom. The S&P 500 lost 1.4% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 2.2%. The DJIA edged 0.1% lower. In Australia, much attention will be on the release of May inflation data likely to inform the Reserve Bank's thinking on interest rates. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

1858 ET - Pipeline owner APA Group gets a new bull in Citi, which lauds its secure, high margin, CPI-linked income and strong customer base. Citi starts coverage of APA with a buy call and A$11.10/share price target. "With gas expected to play an important role in Australia's energy transition, we see scope for expansion and further pipeline capacity," analyst Suraj Nebhani says. He points to the potential for APA to expand its footprint in Australia's Beetaloo basin. "Behind the meter power solutions for data centers is a potential growth avenue, via the contract power generation business developing gas and renewable power projects," Citi adds. APA ended Tuesday at A$10.36. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

Reliance Worldwide is set for a 16% rise in Ebit in FY27, says Jefferies. But little of that will be underlying earnings growth. Analyst Ramoun Lazar says it will almost entirely be driven by a shakeup in tariff regimes and the benefit of closing its Australian brass operations. "Sustained multiple re-rating requires improvement in U.S. macroeconomic backdrop or other initiatives (such as M&A) to deliver earnings benefits," Jefferies says. It retains a buy call on Reliance Worldwide and raises its price target by 11% to A$4.20/share. Reliance Worldwide ended Tuesday at A$3.56/share. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1836 ET - Forsyth Barr retains a "neutral" call on A2 Milk, despite easing concerns around supply-chain disruptions and its U.S. product recall. It says the ramp-up of the Pokeno plant should materially alleviate supply-chain pressures in FY27. Still, China-label infant milk formula availability remains constrained. "And, with disruptions extending beyond the April/May period where A2 Milk had expected the greatest impact, we see an increasing risk of flow-on effects into FY27 and FY28," analyst Will Twiss says. It's upbeat about A2 Milk's medium-term earnings outlook. But A2 Milk is trading at 26x FY27 EPS. Forsyth Barr's earnings forecasts are also below consensus over the next two years. "The margin of safety is modestly too narrow to justify a more positive investment stance at this stage," it says. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

1807 ET - FedEx recorded better-than-expected results in its latest quarter, but shares are taking a hit in after-hours trading. The stock move likely reflects elevated expectations among investors heading into the report, Citi analysts say, noting shares have gained about 75% in the past year. Confusion related to the spinoff of the company's freight division, which took effect June 1, the analysts say, could also be playing a role. The analysts say they are looking to hear how management expects earnings to build through the year to reach its full-year target as it looks to establish a consistent earnings and a free cash flow growth trajectory post-spinoff. Shares slip 5.9%, to $298.39, in late trading. (kelly.cloonan@wsj.com)

1724 ET - Differences in business valuations by buyers and sellers are expected to remain the biggest hurdle to mergers and acquisitions this year, according to a survey that law firm Norton Rose Fulbright conducted with executives of companies, private-equity firms and investment banks. Nearly half, or 48%, cited valuation gaps as the biggest obstacle to M&A. Geopolitical uncertainty and the lack, or increased cost, of financing, was cited by 39% and 37% of the respondents, respectively. But dealmakers are increasingly creative to overcome valuation differences, says Renée Loiselle, a partner at Norton Rose. She cites earn-outs, or additional payments if an acquired business achieves future performance targets, as well as sellers' reinvestments of a portion of sale proceeds back into the business that was sold. (luis.garcia@wsj.com; @lhvgarcia)

1624 ET - Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy reported a purchase of 520 bitcoin yesterday, making it 847,363 bitcoin owned by the company. At an average price of $75,651 per bitcoin in Strategy's stack, the company is roughly $9.4 billion underwater -- or 14.6% below cost, says The Block Research in a note. "This is… the first time the full preferred-funded capital stack has been in place during a deep drawdown," says analysts with the firm in a note. They add that Strategy faces a war of attrition, with the question being how much of its stack it'll have to liquidate to stay afloat before there's a turnaround in prices. Bitcoin is down 3.3% to $62,273 today. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)

1612 ET - Technology shares fall again as investors rotate out of artificial intelligence bets. Defensive sectors like consumer staples, real estate and healthcare lead advancers. Chip companies inclusing Nvidia, Intel and Micron Technology drop sharply following overnight losses by Samsung Electronics.The dollar strengthens, pressuring gold and oil prices. Oracle falls 5.7% as it said it cut around 21,000 jobs last year while investing heavily in AI and data centers. DJIA edges down 45 points to 51666, while the S&P 500 drops 1.4% to 7365 and the Nasdaq slides 2.2% to 25587.(patrick.sullivan@wsj.com)

1429 ET - Carnival's decision to hold firm on core pricing for its cruise line tickets is denting financial performance, Melius Research says in a note. Forward booking took a hit in March after the Iran war started, and the impacts continued into May, say analysts Conor Cunningham and Patrick Coleman. Lower occupancy on European cruises due to the war is expected to create a 14-cent headwind to EPS on the year, they say. Carnival's decision not to lower prices is "a pretty material change" to its strategy, which once prioritized occupancy over pricing. Carnival drops 5.7%. (katherine.hamilton@wsj.com)

1427 ET - Darden Restaurants is slated to release its F4Q results on Thursday, and Guggenheim expects strong traffic trends at LongHorn Steakhouse to offset sluggish growth at Olive Garden. Analysts Gregory Francfort and Arian Razai see same-store sales at LongHorn coming in ahead of consensus, while SSS at Olive Garden come in below. "Cost pressures related to the war in the Middle East (utilities, packaging, and transportation) will likely limit 4Q earnings upside and could put a cap on the F'27 guidance, which is traditionally given with 4Q," they say in a research note. "Labor inflation could be a positive surprise following years of market tightness, but we expect ongoing beef headwinds and pressure on other restaurant expense inflation to cap margins." (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1412 ET - The slide in tech stocks looks like repositioning as positive macro data prompt a move to cyclical parts of the economy, says David Russell, global head of market strategy at TradeStation. "We're at the end of the best quarter that tech stocks have had this century. There's a lot of chopping and consolidation," he says. "My sense is we're seeing a shift away from a lot of the tech, not because it's overall bad but because it's a quarter end, and we're starting to see a real argument in favor of things like banks and retail stocks and some of the consumer non-growth stocks." Those could benefit if there is a sustained drop in oil and diesel prices that lower inflation and the market starts to see a potentially less hawkish or somewhat dovish Fed, he adds. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 23, 2026 19:05 ET (23:05 GMT)

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