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

0952 GMT - Young & Co.'s Brewery's rise in first-half sales for fiscal 2027 prompts an upgrade to pretax profit forecasts, Peel Hunt analysts Douglas Jack and Ivor Jones say. Like-for-like sales rose 6.4%, significantly outpacing the broader pub sector average of 3.4% from April to August, with performance reflecting the investment in sites, services and products, the analysts say. Peel Hunt raises expectations for fiscal 2027 by 3.4% to 51.5 million pounds as sales should be supported by around 70 million pounds of net capex including acquisitions. "We will consider further forecast upgrades later in 2H provided the political-economic backdrop is clearer," the analysts say. Shares are up 8.6% at 925 pence, and are up 25% in the year-to-date. (anthony.orunagoriainoff@dowjones.com)

0944 GMT - Shanghai Biren Technology raises its 2027 revenue target to 20 billion yuan, as the average selling price of its soon-to-be-released chip has doubled, DBS analysts say in a note after a meeting with management. Biren completed the design process of its second-generation chip, the BR20X, in August and expects customer adoption test results within the next three to four months, they say. The average selling price was reset to 300,000 yuan from 150,000 yuan while it still expects to ship 70,000 chips next year, the analysts say. Management thinks that as Nvidia H200's street prices in China have risen to 300,000 yuan-400,000 yuan, BR20X's new price tag is justified as it can deliver 80%-120% of H200's performance. Shares last ended at 37.38 Hong Kong dollars. (sherry.qin@wsj.com)

0938 GMT - Assicurazioni Generali's unusually strong share price performance means the stock is now fully valued, Jefferies' Philip Kett and Derald Goh write. The Italian insurer's earnings expectations and valuation multiple have been transformed since the start of 2024, Jefferies says. There are also some minor headwinds which could weigh on the stock in the near future, the analysts add, including a worsening retail pricing outlook in non-life insurance. However, Jefferies retains its positive view of the strategy. The re-rating leads Jefferies to cut its stock recommendation to hold from buy, but increase the target price to 38 euros from 28.50 euros. Shares are down 0.4% at 43.33 euros but have risen 21% year to date. (michael.hennessey@wsj.com)

0916 GMT - The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index is set to have a wider buffer around its expanded 50-stock gauge, CIMB Securities' Ivy Ng Lee Fang says in a note. With inclusion and deletion thresholds revised to 40th and 61st, respectively, from 25th and 36th, the risk of frequent index turnover is reduced, the analyst writes. The changes will take effect with the December review as the KLCI expands to 50 constituents from 30. Based on Sept. 28 market-cap data, Ng says Unisem and Kelington could enter the index, replacing Genting Malaysia and Malayan Cement. Westports, United Plantations, Vitrox and Sime Darby are among others that could be included, she adds. The final list will be based on market-cap data as at Nov. 23. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)

0914 GMT - Commerzbank's share price upside is limited by uncertainty around the German bank's future strategy, Deutsche Bank's Benjamin Goy writes. Recent outperformance by the company means many of its key catalysts have either played out or are now better understood, Goy says. These include rising net interest income, large capital returns and improving sentiment on Germany. The stock is trading at a modest premium to the sector, Deutsche Bank says, even following an additional earnings-per-share upgrade. Deutsche Bank downgrades the stock to a hold recommendation with an unchanged target price of 42 euros. There are better stocks than Commerzbank to benefit from higher interest rates, the analyst adds. Shares are down 2.3% at 41.01 euros. (michael.hennessey@wsj.com)

0908 GMT - Investors are dialing up their bets on the life-sciences industry as AI-related demand emerges as a growth driver for lab-tools makers and other companies in the drug supply chain, RBC Capital Markets analysts say. Recent comments from company executives suggest the AI demand is moving from theoretical to evidenced, according to RBC. Traditional pharma companies and AI-native drug discovery startups are investing at a scale that will require a jump in biological data generation, the analysts say. "The demand signal differs by position in the value chain: research and labs now, with instruments first and consumables a few quarters after, preclinical [contract research organizations] picking up volume as new assets progress faster through the research phase, and then [contract drug manufacturing organizations] and bioprocessing companies last," they add. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0900 GMT - A suite of new product launches by Robinhood represents a significant strategic acceleration for the company, Deutsche Bank's Brian Bedell writes. At a company summit in Houston, the brokerage said it will use AI to help build users' investment strategies and eventually to place trades on behalf of users. The launches will "provide institutional-grade tools to Robinhood's retail user base," Bedell writes. The changes aim to equip traders for the turn to 24/7 trading, the analyst says. Robinhood shares rise 2.35% premarket.(josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0844 GMT - AstraZeneca is hedging against a key threat to its antibody drug conjugate portfolio through its collaboration with Summit Therapeutics, Citi analysts say in a research note. The agreement has limited immediate impact, but it is a sensible move by the U.K. drugmaker in case medicines like Summit's ivonescimab--known as PD-1/VEGF--become an alternative backbone therapy to existing treatments called PD-1 and PD-L1, the analysts say. AstraZeneca is testing its Datroway antibody drug conjugate in combination with its PD-L1 medicine Imfinzi for lung cancer in a late-stage clinical trial. Moreover, AstraZeneca's stake in Summit gives it exposure to PD-1/VEGF in the event the drug class takes off, the analysts add. AstraZeneca shares rise 0.1%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0823 GMT - Shares of European semiconductor companies are in the green as investors await Micron Technology results after the U.S. market closes. Investors will be scrutinizing figures and commentary from the memory chip maker for signs of how artificial-intelligence demand is holding up. Micron shares are up 0.6% at $1,071.70 premarket. In Europe, shares of Dutch semiconductor-equipment maker ASML Holding and smaller rival ASM International are up 1.2% and 1.8%, respectively. BE Semiconductor Industries, the Dutch supplier of semiconductor assembly equipment, is up 0.4%. German chip maker Infineon Technologies' stock gains 1.5%. STMicroelectronics shares are up 0.1%. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)

0807 GMT - Nokia could report third-quarter sales and EBIT slightly ahead of consensus, but the market needs to see near-term sales upgrades to take the stock up significantly, J.P. Morgan analysts write. The market remains concerned about Nokia's ability to execute strong AI and cloud orders due to component shortages, so supply commentary will be a key focus. If Nokia can raise near-term sales and margin guidance in network infrastructure, it would increase market confidence in order delivery capability. The bank remains very bullish on the stock, and if Nokia can beat earnings expectations, confirm supply and lift guidance, "we believe the upside on the stock could be very strong." It rates Nokia at overweight with an 18 euro price target. Shares fall 0.2% to 9.14 euros. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

0800 GMT [Dow Jones]--There's no one-size-fits-all solution for managing AI spending within a business, but 75% of the companies who have most effectively leveraged AI have some sort of guideline on token spending, according to a new Boston Consulting Group report. About half of those companies actively encourage employees to maximize their AI usage, while 22% have limits or controls to manage spending. "Organizations that have a strong financial muscle are well-prepared to leverage that capability for AI," BCG Managing Director Natasha Taylor says, adding that businesses are growing smarter about routing less complex AI tasks to cheaper models. (elias.schisgall@wsj.com)

0800 GMT [Dow Jones]--AI spending is increasingly coming from all parts of the enterprise, not just the IT budget, according to a new Boston Consulting Group report. Non-IT spending on AI was five to six times higher than IT spending among surveyed businesses, and IT budgets held flat year over year while overall AI spending tripled. The growth of spending on AI across business units indicates that effective AI adoption is "a strategic imperative for the whole enterprise," BCG Managing Director Natasha Taylor says. "To be successful requires engagement from all of the functions in an organization."