3 fantastic ASX 200 shares to buy in October

Morgans reckons these shares are buys with market-beating potential.

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Key points

  • A quick service restaurant operator is recommended for its conservative guidance and robust sales growth, offering a 13% potential upside.
  • A data centre operator is tipped as a buy due to strong revenue growth prospects and strategic partnerships, suggesting a 12% upside.
  • A coal miner is highlighted for its cost reductions and strong balance sheet, potentially benefiting from a future coal price upswing with a 22% upside.

A new month is almost here, so what better time to look at making some new portfolio additions.

But which ASX 200 shares could be in the buy zone?

To narrow things down, let's take a look at three that Morgans is tipping as buys. They are as follows:

Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF)

Morgans thinks that this quick service restaurant operator could be an ASX 200 share to buy.

It was impressed with its strong start to FY 2026 and feels that management's guidance is likely to prove conservative. It said:

CKF's AGM trading update was stronger than expected, with improving sales growth seen across all regions. FY26 guidance was reiterated for low to mid-teens underlying NPAT growth. The stronger than expected 1H26 trading update confirms that guidance is likely conservative.

It also includes Taco Bell losses (planned exit in FY26). Improving sales growth is being delivered through product innovation and strong execution. With a domestic consumer recovery still largely yet to play out, we see further upside from here. Maintain BUY.

Morgans has a buy rating and $12.20 price target. This implies potential upside of approximately 13% for investors.

NextDC Ltd (ASX: NXT)

Another ASX 200 share that gets the seal of approval from Morgans is data centre operator NextDC.

The broker was pleased with its performance in FY 2025 and expects the company to build on this in the coming years. Especially given its contracted capacity, which is underpinning strong revenue growth. It said:

NXT's FY25 result in line with expectations as was FY26, but FY27 was higher. Highlights of the result include: 1) a slide which finally shows investors the revenue ramp-up profile of NXT's contracted MWs (it's faster than anticipated so upgrades forecasts); 2) the pipeline is larger than ever (~2 GWs in NSW alone); and 3) setting up a partnership in Japan and Joint Ventures for S4/S7 will lower NXT's equity requirements (relative to 100% self-funding).

While none of these items are totally new, collectively they represent good reasons for the share price to rally strongly. We lift FY26F EBITDA by 2% and FY27 by 23%. We also lift our capex forecasts. The net result is our target price lifts to $19.00 per share from $18.80.

As mentioned above, Morgans has a buy rating and $19.00 price target. This suggests that upside of 12% is possible from current levels.

Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)

Finally, if you are looking for mining sector exposure then coal miner Whitehaven Coal could be one way to do it.

Morgans was happy with its FY 2025 results and particularly its cost reductions and optimisation. It believes this leaves the ASX 200 share well-positioned for the next upswing in the coal price. It said:

The FY25 result reaffirmed WHC's current focus on stable and repeatable execution, helped by ongoing optimisation and cost reductions, and evident in similar production and reduced FOB cost guidance for FY26. We think current capital preservation efforts, and a strong balance sheet ensure that WHC will ride out the coal pricing downturn to play into the next coal price upswing, unlocking upside cashflow returns once again.

We show that WHC's share price infers the market is pricing in little to no upside in coal pricing, despite prices being below levels we think are sustainable. We rate WHC a BUY with a target price of A$8.10ps and see the stock as a compelling opportunity for patient investors.

Morgans has a buy rating and $8.10 price target on its shares. This implies potential upside of 22% over the next 12 months.

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Collins Foods and Nextdc. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Collins Foods. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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