The latest Market Talks covering the Health Care sector. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
0107 GMT - Top Glove's earnings outlook could remain supported by planned selling price hikes despite raw material headwinds, as the glove maker aims to fully pass through higher input costs and protect margins, CGS International analysts William Wo Chen Weng and Prem Jearajasingam say in a note. Tight nitrile butadiene rubber supply as well as rising nitrile and natural rubber prices may weigh on sales volumes, but flexible production could allow a shift toward natural rubber gloves. Margins are expected to improve in fiscal 2H, helping to offset 1H weakness, they note. The stock's current valuation looks undemanding, and it is well-positioned to navigate volatile market conditions, they add. CGSI maintains an add rating on Top Glove and keeps its target price at 0.67 ringgit. Shares are unchanged at 0.56 ringgit. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
2231 GMT [Dow Jones]--In healthcare, drug wholesalers and pathology specialists are most exposed to higher fuel prices stoked by the conflict in the Middle East. That's the view of Ord Minnett, which trims price targets on several stocks in Australia's healthcare sector, including Ebos, Paragon Care and Australian Clinical Labs. "We note that these businesses have freight and logistics operations (e.g. medicine supply, sample transportation) and a limited ability to pass on input costs near-term," analyst Tom Godfrey says. "As an example, Ebos is run-rating A$182 million of freight costs in FY26 (1% of revenue, 16% of opex)." Its price target on Ebos falls 3.3% to A$29.00/share. Ord Minnett cuts price targets on Paragon Care and Australian Clinical Labs by 5.7% and 8.3% to A$0.33/share and A$2.20/share, respectively. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
2208 GMT - Forsyth Barr thinks Ebos needs to reset its gearing targets as part of its investor day on April 30. Ebos has historically targeted leverage of less than 2.3x net debt to Ebitda. Analyst Matt Montgomerie highlights Ebos's growing lease obligations, which aren't covered by that goal. So, the leverage target likely understates its gearing. "We think Ebos needs to provide a clear target with leases included in net debt," says Forsyth Barr. "We think our FY26 forecast of 2.7x is on the high side of investor comfort levels and provides limited headroom for M&A." Forsyth Barr has an outperform call and NZ$35.80/share price target on Ebos, which is up 1.7% at NZ$22.28 today. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
1527 GMT - Novartis's share-price strength this year raises the bar for upcoming data on late-stage clinical studies that will be pivotal for the Swiss drugmaker's outlook, Bank of America analysts say in a research note. Pipeline failure could hit consensus estimates, but success would help shift investors' focus away from patent expirations, according to Bank of America. Among Novartis's upcoming phase 3 trials, Bank of America is most focused on remibrutinib in relapse-remitting multiple sclerosis and pelacarsen in secondary prevention of cardiovascular events, the analysts say. The drugs could generate $3 billion and $3.1 billion in annual peak sales, respectively, the analysts estimate. Bank of America raises its target price on Novartis stock to 140 Swiss francs from 130 francs. Shares rise 1.1% to 116.84 francs. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)
1205 GMT - Sandoz Group looks well positioned to benefit from long-term opportunities in the biosimilar-drug segment, but its stock seems fairly valued after a strong performance in recent months, RBC Capital Markets' Natalia Webster and Charles Weston say in a research note. Sandoz last week added five drugs to a pipeline that already covered about $200 billion out of the $320 billion biosimilar loss-of-exclusivity market opportunity over the next decade, the analysts say. With a quiet period for patent expirations this year and next, there is limited room for near-term consensus estimates to increase, they add. RBC lowers its recommendation on Sandoz to sector perform from outperform and lifts its target price to 65 Swiss francs from 53 francs. Shares fall 1.6% to 59.84 francs, but are up 57% over the past year. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)
1137 GMT - Shares in European luxury companies climb following President Trump's latest comments regarding the war in the Middle East. Trump posted on Truth Social that the U.S. and Iran have had "very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution" of hostilities in the region. Trump has instructed to postpone military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for five days, pending the success of discussions. Sector bellwether LVMH is up 3.2%, while peers Kering and Hermes trade 5% and 2.4% higher, respectively. Richemont's shares rise more than 5%. Brunello Cucinelli, Burberry and Salvatore Ferragamo jump more than 3%. Danish jeweler Pandora is up 12%, while EssilorLuxottica and Swatch Group climb more than 2%. (andrea.figueras@wsj.com)
1102 GMT - Novo Nordisk's Wegovy weight-loss pill launch continues to impress, UBS analyst Matthew Weston writes. Latest data show there were 89,279 total prescriptions for the Wegovy pill in its tenth week of launch, up 10% on the week, UBS says. There is also no material evidence that the pill is taking market share from the injectable market, it adds. The bank says sales volumes have risen due to the lower price point compared with the Wegovy injection, which is a positive as the company's guidance assumed more limited volume growth for the injectable product amid competition from the pill. Focus points later in the year will be Medicare obesity coverage from July, the high dose Wegovy launch and competitive dynamics from Eli Lilly's obesity pill launch. Shares fall 2.2%. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)
1046 GMT - European luxury companies could be hurt by the Middle East war, but to varying degrees, RBC Capital Markets analyst Piral Dadhania writes. The sector will face fallout from the conflict including a decline in purchasing power, travel disruptions, and supply chain issues, the analyst says. Recent stock price declines reflect fears that the war will continue to weigh on demand and earnings in the second and third quarters, the analyst says. Despite these challenges, Dadhania sees Hermes, Moncler and EssilorLuxottica as attractive opportunities due either to limited Middle East exposure or high margins. Swatch, Richemont and Kering face higher risks to earnings. (andrea.figueras@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 24, 2026 04:20 ET (08:20 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments