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

1113 GMT - Europe's drinks business is showing signs of a solid rebound, analysts at Bernstein write in a note to clients. Brewers like Denmark's Carlsberg and Amsterdam-listed Heineken have seen a recovery in their share prices amid signs of a return to growth in volumes, while French cognac distiller Remy Cointreau's share has also risen in the wake of a well-received turnaround plan. Still, spirits groups Diageo and Pernod Ricard are both lagging, Bernstein notes. "We continue to prefer beer over our spirits, as the critical U.S. spirits market continues to be weak," the brokerage says. But in any case, all the stocks look attractively priced at current levels, the analysts say.(joshua.kirby@wsj.com; @joshualeokirby)

1101 GMT - Schott Pharma shares jump after stronger-than-expected results and increased guidance. "While we recently upgraded the stock to buy on the expectation of accelerating growth, we are positively surprised by the magnitude of this beat and guidance raise and believe it serves as a major catalyst for the shares," Deutsche Bank says in a note. Schott Pharma, which makes packaging and delivery systems for injectable medications, attributes the guidance raise to a strong performance and a new agreement with a customer for glass syringes. Shares trade 14% higher at 20.10 euros. (sarah.sloat@wsj.com)

1054 GMT - PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta says the snacks and soda maker will invest in productivity across the organization, most notably in developed markets. The company aims to improve operating leverage by leaning into automation, digitalization and simplification initiatives across the business. "Savings will be used to help sustain investments that support the evolution of the portfolio and deliver good value to consumers," Laguarta says. PepsiCo shares are off 1.5% premarket. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1053 GMT - PepsiCo has been working to improve sales by cutting prices across its snacks business to bring back inflation-weary customers and restaging several of its largest brands to lean into current trends. The company saw both its convenient foods and beverage businesses perform well in North America during the recent quarter, CEO Ramon Laguarta says. However, overall results were tempered, "as U.S. food and beverage category performance moderated with consumer budgets tightening due to rising inflationary pressures." (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1044 GMT - German defense groups will lose out as European militaries shift spending away from tanks and armored vehicles toward air defense, MWB Research analysts write. "The NATO summit disappointed the tank bulls and confirmed the shift in spending priorities," the analysts say. The strategy shift will hurt Hensoldt, Rheinmetall and Renk given their role as suppliers of land-based systems, the analysts say. Company-specific factors will also drag, they add. The analysts highlight Estonia dropping a 500 million-euro order for vehicles from Rheinmetall to invest in drones and air defense instead. Hensoldt is facing greater competition in its sensor business, while Renk shares are relatively expensive compared with peers, MWB says. Rheinmetall, Hensoldt and Renk shares fall 3.8%, 5.3% and 4.05%, respectively. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

1036 GMT - Fielmann's first-half revenue growth of 2% was weighed down by an anemic consumer mood in the domestic market, MWB Research says in a note. "This modest headline growth primarily reflects a persistent drag from the core German market, where weak consumer sentiment continues to weigh on discretionary spending," analyst Thomas Wissler writes. Nevertheless, momentum outside Germany is helping to offset that weakness for Fielmann, which makes and sells eyeglasses and related products. Shares trade 0.8% lower at 42.25 euros. (sarah.sloat@wsj.com)

1035 GMT - Europe's Stoxx 600 earnings are more resilient than expected thanks to a boost from AI and expectation-beating banks, UBS's Gerry Fowler says. Though Europe remains insufficiently inspiring to compete with other global regions, the continent's cheap starting point means stocks have room to rise, Fowler says. Currently, markets reflect lukewarm expectations for the upcoming earnings season. However, "Q2 earnings should confirm that Europe is holding up better than the macro narrative suggests," Fowler says. Sectors that have weighed on the index like healthcare, consumer staples and luxuries are starting to turn a corner, while outperforming sectors like banks and AI-linked stocks have further to rise, Fowler says. UBS upgrades its target for the Stoxx 600 to 690. The index is up 0.3% at 637.58 in early afternoon trade. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

1031 GMT - PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta says the company's year-to-date global organic volume growth has increased at the highest rate since 2022. He attributes growth in part to the strength of Pepsi's international business, which derives about 80% of its net revenue from developing and emerging markets. The snacks and soda maker is also benefiting from "the continued evolution of the portfolio to offer more choices through portion control varieties, diverse ingredients, functional benefits such as hydration, protein and fiber, energy and zero sugar beverage varieties," Laguarta says. Pepsi shares tick up 1% premarket after posting higher 2Q revenue. (connor.hart@wsj.com)

1025 GMT - Telenor's proposed acquisition of Swedish broadband provider Bahnhof is a positive move and marks the next step in the company's capital reallocation efforts into the Nordics, UBS analyst Ondrej Cabejsek writes. The deal will make Telenor the second largest broadband group in the country, taking its market share from 15% to 27%, UBS says. It follows Telenor's acquisition of GlobalConnect's fiber-to-the-home business in Norway and Telia's acquisition of Bredband2 in Sweden, making it a third major consolidation in the region's fragmented fixed broadband landscape. The bank adds that for a cost of 6.1 billion Swedish kronor, Telenor could end up with an acquisition that adds around 750 million Norwegian kroner to its Nordic free cash flow once integration is complete. Shares fall 0.8% to 143.50 kroner. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

1022 GMT - Wolters Kluwer's growth is set to accelerate in the second half and into 2027 thanks to artificial intelligence, J.P. Morgan analysts write in a note. The Dutch information-services company's investments, acquisitions and new product launches support confidence in its competitive advantage in AI and in its long-term growth, they say. "Furthermore, embedded AI should reinforce the value of its governed data." The U.S. bank upgrades its stock recommendation to overweight from neutral and its target price to 87 euros from 73 euros. Shares are up 4.4% at 61.60 euros. (najat.kantouar@wsj.com)

1010 GMT - China's fiscal deployment is likely to accelerate in 2H, according to Citi analysts in a research note. "An underappreciated driver of the sharp 2Q slowdown is a de facto fiscal austerity," they note. Both central and local government are contributing to the austerity, and Citi expects the situation to reverse in 2H as fiscal deployment accelerates. "We don't expect a mid-year budget revision," the bank says. Instead, Citi will closely watch long-term fiscal reforms addressing central-local imbalances, they say. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)

0957 GMT - Levi Strauss's sales growth is broad-based and its revenue is stronger than the market currently appreciates, Jefferies's Blake Anderson writes. The jeans maker is growing sales across geographies, product lines and store types, the analyst says. Company management's sales outlook reflects prudence, rather than reflecting concern around the group's growth potential, Anderson says. Moreover, concerns around European sales are overdone, with a slight fall in second-quarter sales mainly down to a transition to a new distribution center, Anderson says. Levi's consumers remain resilient, and there are no signs demand is waning or that consumers are balking at higher prices, the analyst adds. Levi shares drop sharply in premarket trade after reporting 2Q earnings Wednesday, falling 6.4%. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 09, 2026 07:13 ET (11:13 GMT)

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