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.

0731 GMT - Medacta should continue to book above-market growth rates but market expectations currently underestimate growth normalization and the investment required to sustain expansion, Deutsche Bank says in a research note. "While Medacta's competitive advantages remain intact, sustaining its historical growth rates will become increasingly challenging as the business scales," Deutsche Bank says. The bank's 2028 organic sales, adjusted Ebitda and EPS estimates lie 3%, 6% and 9% below consensus, respectively. Deutsche Bank initiates the Swiss orthopedics company's stock at hold, with a target of 121 francs. Shares trade 1.9% lower at 113.20 francs. (sarah.sloat@wsj.com)

0208 GMT - UltraGreen.ai could face pricing pressure after a competitor, Zydus Lifesciences, launches its product in the U.S., say DBS Group Research analysts in a note. Zydus has begun marketing its diagnostic imaging dye in the U.S., according to the Food and Drug Administration, the analysts say. This increases competition for UltraGreen, as the Americas accounts for 70% of its revenue, they say. Zydus likely can afford to compete aggressively on price to establish market share in this business, while UltraGreen remains disproportionately exposed to any erosion in average selling prices and volumes, they add. DBS cuts its 2027 revenue and earnings estimates for UltraGreen by 31% and 45%, respectively. The bank trims its target price to 65 U.S. cents from US$0.80 and maintains a hold rating. Shares decline 5.1% to US$0.555. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)

0109 GMT - Immutep gets a new bull at Jefferies, where analyst David Stanton sees a clearer potential development path for the biotechnology company's lead product candidate. Raising his recommendation to buy from hold, Stanton is encouraged by the Australian company's update that the early discontinuation of a lung cancer study doesn't appear to be linked to clinical factors or trial execution. Emerging evidence supports a cautiously constructive view that the outcome stemmed from an isolated manufacturing or product-characterisation issue, Stanton explains in a note to clients. Risk/reward looks more constructive to Stanton, who now includes Immutep's phase IIhead and neck squamous cell carcinoma opportunity in his valuation. Jefferies doubles its target price to 8 Australian cents. Shares are flat at 4.7 Australian cents. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)

1504 GMT - AstraZeneca just suffered its third failure of a late-stage clinical trial in less than three months, but it can overcome these setbacks, Bernstein analysts say in a research note. The negative results of its Etcamah breast-cancer drug add to earlier disappointing results for its Wainua drug in a heart-disease trial and for lung-cancer drug candidate volrustomig.Swiss rival Roche was also hit by three late-stage trial failures in 2022 and its stock underperformed European peers until the fourth quarter of 2025, but AstraZeneca doesn't have to follow the same fate, Bernstein says. AstraZeneca's late-stage drug pipeline looks fuller than Roche's was back then, and the majority of its studies with results due next year should face low risk, the analysts say. AstraZeneca shares rise 3.1%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

1456 GMT - AstraZeneca's Etcamah breast-cancer drug failed a clinical trial in advanced breast cancer, but this doesn't mean investors should count out another study for the same medicine at an earlier stage of the disease, Citi analysts say. The market had been largely expecting a failure given the similarity between the Etcamah trial and a separate study of Roche's giredestrant drug that missed its objective earlier this year, the analysts say in a note. Just like Roche's giredestrant, the medicine from the U.K. drugmaker could still hit the objective in a trial for early breast cancer, the analysts add. AstraZeneca is expected to publish results from the early-breast-cancer study in the second half of 2027, according to Citi. Shares in AstraZeneca rise 3%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

1450 GMT - AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo's Enhertu drug showed impressive results in a late-stage study for lung cancer, but faces tough competition, RBC Capital Markets analysts say in a research note. The drugmakers said Enhertu delayed a type of advanced lung cancer from worsening by six months compared with the standard-of-care therapy. This was the first study to beat the standard therapy--Merck's Keytruda plus chemotherapy--on progression-free survival as a first-line treatment for this type of lung cancer, the analysts say. Nevertheless, rival therapies from Bayer and Boehringer Ingelheim that belong to a different class of medicines recently got approval. With similar efficacy and a more manageable adverse-event profile, Bayer and Boehringer's drugs could have the upper hand, RBC says. AstraZeneca shares rise 3.6%, while Daiichi closes 2.7% higher. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

1404 GMT - Roche Holding and GSK's Chinese partners reported strong clinical-trial data for their respective lung-cancer drug candidates in China-only clinical trials, analysts at J.P. Morgan write in a research note. Both drugs, one from GSK and partner Hansoh Pharmaceutical and another from Roche and MediLink, showed a 54% improvement in overall survival rates in the trials. This seems competitive relative to a 40% benefit shown by Amgen's Imdelltra in a global trial, the analysts say. Roche and MediLink's candidate tam-peli has a better tolerability profile than GSK and Hansoh's ris-rez, they add. Ris-rez has better median overall-survival data, but it will be important to confirm this result in a global trial, according to JPM. GSK shares rise 4.6% and Roche's jump 5.7%, while Hansoh's close 5.1% higher. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

1232 GMT - Novo Nordisk's rebrand as just Novo is a statement of intent that change is coming to the Danish drugmaker, Branding Science's Ed Corbett says. "They want to signal, not only externally but also internally, a change of direction," Corbett says. The company is coming off a challenging period marked by stiff competition and job cuts, he says. While the new name might help executives to introduce changes across the organization, it won't be the end-all be-all, Corbett says. From a consumer perspective, the change might have a limited impact, given that consumers tend to be more familiar with product brands such as Wegovy and Ozempic, rather than with the names of the companies that make them, he adds. Novo shares rise 2.1%. (adria.calatayud@wsj.com)

0913 GMT - GSK's new data for lung-cancer drug Jideytro shows a competitive profile for a potential label expansion next year, analysts at J.P. Morgan say in a research note. The U.K. drugmaker said Jideytro helped delay the progression of the disease for a year for 90% of patients with a type of advanced lung cancer in a clinical trial, and that it would seek a label expansion based on the data. "Efficacy looks competitive with Nuvation's Ibtrozi with a stronger 12 month [progression free survival] rate," the analysts say. The data support JPM's peak sales estimate for the drug of 900 million pounds. Investors' focus turns toward the launch trajectory for Jideytro as a second-line treatment ahead of a potential expansion to first line in the second half of 2027, the analysts say. Shares rise 3.5%.