0428 GMT - Bank of Queensland shakes its bear at Morgan Stanley after cutting costs and holding its margin while managing to improve business loan growth. Analyst Richard E. Wiles raises his recommendation on the stock to equal-weight from underweight following the Australian regional lender's first-half result. He tells clients in a note that the improvement in annualized commercial lending growth is encouraging, with an increase in business bankers helping support the outlook. Wiles expects underlying revenue growth in the fiscal second half if the bank can deliver on its margin guidance. MS raises its target price by 6.5% to A$6.50. Shares are up 4.2% at A$7.15. (stuart.condie@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 17, 2025 00:28 ET (04:28 GMT)
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