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

0235 GMT - South Korean internet giant Naver could post a 3Q earnings miss, Nomura's Angela Hong says. The company's operating profit likely came in below market consensus, partly dragged down by elevated costs for infrastructure and offline business expansion, the analyst writes in a note. Hong trims her earnings-per-share forecasts for Naver by 8% for both 2026 and 2027, citing expectations for softer near-term earnings and margin headwinds. Though the company's longer-term artificial-intelligence factory project remains on track, she remains on the sidelines pending greater visibility into AI data-center demand and return profiles. Nomura maintains a 210,000-won target price and neutral rating on the stock. Shares are 0.9% lower at 191,900 won. (kwanwoo.jun@wsj.com)

0220 GMT - Codan's second-half outlook for its communications division looks potentially conservative to UBS analysts. While they maintain a neutral rating on the technology hardware supplier, the investment bank's analysts think that the second-half outlook implied by its annual divisional growth guide assumes there will be no new conflict-related contract wins over the balance of the year. They tell clients in a note that this take seems conservative and that they see substantial upside to Codan's guidance for 30%-40% revenue growth at its communications business. UBS lifts its target price 43% to 68.50 Australian dollars. Shares are up 0.6% at A$66.20. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0220 GMT - After Lynas Rare Earths' planned takeover of Meteoric Resources, Euroz Hartleys wonders: "How long will VMM [Viridis Mining] last from here?" Viridis's Colossus project neighbors the Caldeira project owned by Meteoric, which is being acquired by Lynas in a 968 million Australian dollars deal. Assuming equal treatment for Viridis implies a value of greater than A$5.00/share, the broker says. Viridis shares surge by 16% to A$3.87. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0211 GMT - LG Electronics India's strong growth without margin dilution is expected to continue in the second quarter, Citi analyst Ashish Kanodia says in a note. A shift toward premium products and price increases are expected to offset raw-material and currency headwinds, with Citi forecasting revenue and Ebitda growth of 15% and 20%, respectively. Citi adds a 90-day upside catalyst watch on the stock, which it continues to view as a top pick in its Indian durables coverage. The bank has a buy rating with a target price of 2,025 rupees. Shares closed 1.7% lower at 1,710.50 rupees Wednesday. (venkat.pr@wsj.com)

0158 GMT - Lynas Rare Earths' planned acquisition of Meteoric Resources is "a decent deal" for Lynas, says Ord Minnett. "It adds a massive resource offering strategic options," the broker says. In the near term, the all-share deal is dilutionary for Lynas and adds some permitting risk, Ord Minnett says. Its net asset value on Lynas goes to A$7.10/share from A$7.60/share. The broker has a "lighten" rating and a A$14.00/share price target on Lynas, both of which are under review pending a detailed assessment of the acquisition, it says. Shares are down 5.7% at A$13.04. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)

0152 GMT - Higher global rates could be a headwind for Malaysian banks, with weaker bond valuations likely to weigh on earnings and capital, Citi analyst Yong Hong Tan says in a note. Higher U.S. rates could also keep more deposits in foreign currencies, driving up ringgit deposit rates and funding costs, he adds. The 10-year Malaysian government securities yield rose 42 basis points on quarter in 3Q, potentially affecting banks' capital and trading income, he says. August data showed banks lengthening deposit maturities while average lending rates fell, pointing to further margin pressure, he reckons. Citi recommends a barbell approach, favoring CIMB for potential capital releases and Public Bank for dividend and wealth-management opportunities. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0151 GMT - Budweiser Brewing's earnings growth is likely to remain under pressure due to a weaker-than-expected recovery in China's beer industry demand, Deutsche Bank analyst Han Zhang says in a note. The bank cuts the company's 2026-28 Ebitda estimates by around 4% and expects 3Q revenue to decline by the low teens, with Ebitda falling by the high teens year-over-year. Deutsche Bank cuts the stock's target price to 8.30 Hong Kong dollars from HK$9.20 and maintains its buy rating. Shares closed at HK$5.915 on Wednesday. (venkat.pr@wsj.com)

0144 GMT - Chinese online travel companies are likely to see resilient long haul and international travel demand over the Mid-Autumn Festival and China National Day holidays, say UOB Kay Hian's Julia Pan and Ooi Su Yann in a note. The extended travel window during this period should mean longer stays and stronger outbound demand, the analysts say. The outlook for these online travel companies remains supported by their international business expansion despite softer local demand, they add.Artificial-intelligence operating efficiency should also buoy these companies' growth, they say. UOB Kay Hian maintains its market weight call on the sector, with Trip.com as its top sector buy. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0116 GMT - Australian business lending will prove more durable for major banks than the market expects, UBS analysts reckon. Parsing regulators' industry data, the analysts observe that business lending continued to grow strongly in August despite an uncertain macroeconomic backdrop, outpacing housing lending. They tell clients in a note that Commonwealth Bank and ANZ were the strongest of the majors in business lending, with the former capturing 28% of flow. ANZ captured 15% and regional lenders grew above the majors in business lending, they add. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0105 GMT - Malaysian banks could face a cautious outlook heading into 4Q, with limited scope for meaningful profit-margin recovery until 1Q 2027, says Hong Leong IB analyst Raymond Ng in a note. System loan growth remained resilient with a 5.7% increase in August, supported by stronger business lending and drawdowns, while asset quality remained broadly stable, he notes. However, lending spreads narrowed as average lending rates fell faster than deposit rates, with renewed deposit competition expected from November potentially delaying margin recovery, he says. Higher Malaysian government securities yields could also weigh on banks' fee-related income, while the KLCI's expansion may create temporary fund-flow pressure, he adds. Hong Leong maintains its neutral rating on Malaysia's banking sector, with Public Bank its top defensive pick for 4Q. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0102 GMT - Macquarie investors are already paying for a substantial portion of the Australian financial-services provider's superior franchise and growth optionality, UBS analysts say. They acknowledge that earnings risks remain positively skewed as it prepares to change CEO, but observe that the stock is already trading at elevated historical multiples. Going forward, they think that investors will be increasingly focused on Macquarie's ability to further improve operating leverage view. They wonder if new CEO Greg Ward can genuinely make Macquarie more competitive on costs. UBS keeps a neutral rating on the stock and lifts its target price 6.0% to 265.00 Australian dollars. Shares are down 0.1% at A$245.78. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

0046 GMT - RBC Capital Markets sees a big positive in Transurban's A$4.5 billion acquisition of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's stake in companies that own the Westlink M7, NorthConnex and WestConnex highways in Sydney. Analyst Owen Birrell says a criticism of Transurban following its FY26 result was the lack of incremental portfolio growth over the medium term, in excess of underlying traffic growth and inflation-linked toll rates. "If the transaction closes, then we could potentially estimate an 8% uplift in proportional earnings through FY27-28, and the potential for improved distributable free cash flows and ultimately distributions," RBC says. Transurban is down 1.2% at A$13.08.