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

0921 GMT - Stock markets will continue to rise due to resilient economic growth and accelerating adoption of artificial intelligence, UBS strategist Matthew Carter writes. Geopolitical concerns and AI jitters shouldn't put investors off stocks, Carter says. A stronger-than-expected earnings season added to the strategist's bullish view on stocks. Though AI-related equities should underpin stock market gains, broader earnings growth means returns will come from other corners of the market, including industrials and financials, Carter says. UBS upgrades its earnings growth expectations for the S&P 500 from 20% to 25% for 2026, and to around 15% from around 10% for the Eurozone. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0838 GMT - Shares of European semiconductor companies are mixed as investors await Nvidia's second-quarter results after the U.S. market close to gauge appetite for artificial-intelligence chips. Dutch semiconductor-equipment maker ASML Holding and smaller rival ASM International are down 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively. BE Semiconductor Industries, the Dutch supplier of semiconductor assembly equipment, is down 0.7%. German chip maker Infineon Technologies is up 0.9%. STMicroelectronics shares are up 1%. Meanwhile, the E-mini Nasdaq 100 futures contract is down 0.3%, pointing to a weak opening for tech stocks in the U.S. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)

0819 GMT - SAP's slower-than-expected rollout of agentic AI is limiting monetization opportunities and removing a potential catalyst to boost the stock, UBS analysts write in a note to clients. They downgrade their rating on the German business-software group's stock to neutral from buy. "The lack of progress in delivering its own AI innovation into customers' hands is disappointing," the analysts say. While earnings growth should remain healthy through 2028, they say a deceleration in SAP's cloud backlog growth in the second half of 2026 is highly likely and would hold back the stock. SAP shares trade 3.8% lower at 178.36 euros. (mauro.orru@wsj.com)

0805 GMT - New York gold futures trade broadly flat at $4,686 a troy ounce in morning European trade. Traders are waiting for U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh to speak at the Jackson Hole gathering on Friday. The market wants to know how the Fed will respond to various inflation scenarios, ANZ analysts write. Higher interest rates weigh on non-yielding assets like gold. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0802 GMT - S&U is likely to report annual profit weighted more heavily to the second half of the year, supported by an uptick in collections at its Advantage Finance business, continued asset growth and high credit quality at subsidiary Aspen Bridging, Berenberg analysts say. Berenberg leaves its estimates for the full year unchanged after the lender's second-quarter trading update, and says it is awaiting outlook details at the interim results in September. Slower repayments at Aspen reflect a shift toward offering longer-term loans to customers rather than a decline in credit quality. This means fee income will be spread over a longer period, which will impact short-term profit. Berenberg maintains a buy recommendation on the stock with a 23.10 pounds target. Shares are down 0.5% at 19.60 pounds. (michael.hennessey@wsj.com)

0753 GMT - Orsted's stabilizing execution and project delivery is a first step toward a return to growth, Citi analyst Jenny Ping writes. The competitive landscape now seems more rational and government support is improving, which should deliver better project return rates, the bank says. With around 20-25 gigawatts of viable tenders over the next 18 months, most with improving auction frameworks that better align with industry cost structures, the Danish renewable-energy company has substantial scope to deliver profitable growth, it says. "In our view, shares currently reflect little value for the unsecured pipeline, investors are effectively receiving a free growth option." Citi upgrades Orsted stock to buy from neutral and lifts its target price to 165 Danish kroner from 142 kroner. Shares rise 1.6% to 141.58 kroner. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

0743 GMT - WuXi XDC Cayman retains its bull at Citi Research on strong growth visibility following its 1H results. The healthcare services company's management maintained its 2026 guidance for 30%-35% revenue compound annual growth over 2025-2030, while noting its total backlog--including milestone fees--has risen 62% on year, the Citi analysts note. It now expects a revenue CAGR in 2026-2035 of 26%, up from 24%, citing a stronger growth outlook. The bank raises its target price to 93.00 Hong Kong dollars from HK$73.00 and maintains a buy rating. Shares decline 3.6% to HK$77.30. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0733 GMT - Oil prices held below $90 a barrel as a flurry of positive headlines around U.S.-Iran peace talks soothed oil traders. In early European trading, Brent crude contracts for October delivery fall 2.5% to $86.38 a barrel, while WTI contracts fall 2.6% to $80.20 a barrel. Iran and Oman diplomats discussed a framework that would allow shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz, the countries said in a joint statement. Meanwhile, "anecdotal evidence suggests there is an increasing flow of vessels utilizing the Omani route through Hormuz," ANZ analysts said. In addition, Axios reported that around 40 ships transited the strait over the weekend, while The New York Times reported U.S. diplomats would return to the Middle East. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)

0733 GMT - Aviation investors can't agree on where airline stocks are heading, though the overall mood is slightly pessimistic, Citi analyst Conor Dwyer says. While large investors are placing huge bets that airlines will do well, others are betting on the opposite and the instability is making stocks jump around wildly, the analyst says. Ryanair, Air France-KLM and IAG have seen the highest proportion of positive bets, with sentiment toward Lufthansa and Wizz Air being more pessimistic, Dwyer says. "Investor sentiment across the sector is becoming more debated, with short and long crowding metrics rising across most of the sector month-over-month," he says. Lufthansa rises 2.5%, followed by Ryanair, up 2.2%, and Wizz Air, up 2%. Air France-KLM is down 0.3%. (anthony.orunagoriainoff@dowjones.com)

0732 GMT - European banks are set to benefit from accelerating loan growth among corporates, Citi analysts say. Business are starting to releverage, with corporate debt-to-GDP at multiyear lows. The U.S. bank believes this acceleration is sustainable and will be helped by AI investment. Banks in the U.K., Ireland and Netherlands are well placed to benefit from this trend, the analysts add. U.S. hyperscalers also require European debt financing, and AI investment should help fee and trading income, Citi writes. U.S. banks are best positioned to benefit from the trend, but European banks should also be boosted. ING, ABN AMRO and Societe Generale are particularly well-placed for lending and UBS and Barclays for new debt and equity issuance, Citi says. (michael.hennessey@wsj.com)

0724 GMT - European oil stocks open lower Wednesday as oil prices fall on diplomatic talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Talks between Pakistan and Iran are reducing the risk of an escalation in the Middle East conflict, ANZ analysts write. The analysts note that local media reports said the discussions yielded valuable results. This pulls Brent crude futures down 1.9% to $85.66 a barrel and WTI is 1.5% lower to $77.96 a barrel. Norway's Equinor leads the fallers, trading down 2.5%. In London, BP declines 2.2% while Shell is down 1.4%. Italy's Eni is down 1.6%, France's TotalEnergies slips 1.3% and Spain's Repsol moves 1% lower.(adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

0721 GMT - European stock indexes largely rose at the open, as lower oil prices buoyed sentiment. Software and AI-linked stocks weaken, though banks gain as the Europe-wide Stoxx 600 rises 0.1%. In Paris, the CAC 40 gains 0.3% as luxury stocks recover some of Tuesday's losses. The German DAX edges 0.1% lower, as gains for banks--Deutsche Bank rises 2.4%--are outweighed by a 2.5% fall for index-heavyweight SAP. London's FTSE 100 is flat. Oil majors fall on lower crude prices--BP and Shell decline 2.1% and 1.4%, respectively--though precious metals miners gain. Italy's FTSE MIB rises 0.2%, while the IBEX 35 adds 0.2%. The Dutch AEX slips 0.2% as AI-related stocks weaken ahead of Nvidia earnings later Wednesday. ASML falls 1%.