Many of Australia's top brokers have been busy adjusting their financial models and recommendations. This has led to a number of new broker notes being released this week.
Three ASX shares that brokers have named as buys are listed below. Here's why their analysts are feeling bullish on them right now:
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James Hardie Industries PLC (ASX: JHX)
According to a note out of Morgan Stanley, its analysts have retained their overweight rating on this building materials company's shares with a $48.00 price target. The broker recently surveyed US contractors and found that James Hardie continues to enjoy a strong market position, with existing customers increasingly using its products. This is encouraging given that conditions in the US housing market remain challenging, with many contractors not expecting a recovery until 2027. Morgan Stanley also sees cross-selling opportunities for the company from its acquisition of TimberTech's parent company. The James Hardie share price is trading at $37.30 on Wednesday.
Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)
A note out of Citi reveals that its analysts have retained their buy rating and $28.85 price target on this cloud infrastructure company's shares. The broker remains positive on Megaport's outlook despite recent weakness across the AI infrastructure sector. It highlights that rental prices for several types of high-performance AI computing chips have increased recently. Citi believes this demonstrates that demand remains strong. The broker also points to comments from Amazon indicating that much of its computing capacity for 2027 is already sold out, with substantial customer commitments extending into 2028. It believes Megaport is well-positioned to capitalise on this demand and highlights its strong balance sheet. Overall, Citi appears to believe that recent share price weakness has created an attractive buying opportunity. The Megaport share price is fetching $18.10 at the time of writing.
Sandfire Resources Ltd (ASX: SFR)
Analysts at Morgans have upgraded this copper producer's shares to a buy rating with an unchanged price target of $23.00. This follows the release of Sandfire's first-quarter update, which fell short of market expectations due largely to weaker zinc production at its Matsa operations. However, Morgans believes the disappointing result is largely a timing issue rather than a sign of more serious operational problems. It highlights that overall production remains consistent with the company's full-year guidance, which management has maintained alongside its cost and capital expenditure forecasts. With Sandfire shares weakening recently, Morgans believes investors are being offered an opportunity to gain exposure to the company's longer-term growth potential at an attractive price. The Sandfire share price is trading at $20.70 on Wednesday.
