Australia Stocks: AWB, AGL Energy, Pacific Brands, Woodside

By Malcolm Scott

Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) -- The S&P/ASX 200 Index was little changed, dropping 0.1 percent to 5,053.8 at 10:24 a.m. in Sydney. The broader All Ordinaries Index fell 6.40 points, or 0.1 percent, to 5,122.40, while the futures index expiring in September declined 0.6 percent to 5,051.

AGL Energy Ltd. (AGK AU), Australia's biggest power and gas retailer, fell 68 cents, or 4.4 percent, to A$14.87. The shares were cut to ``sell'' from ``hold'' at Goldman Sachs JBWere Ltd. and to ``neutral'' from ``overweight'' at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

AWB Ltd. (AWB AU), Australia's largest wheat exporter, added 12 cents, or 4 percent, to A$3.09, after the shares were raised to ``buy'' from ``hold'' at ABN Amro Holdings NV.

Pacific Brands Ltd. (PBG AU), Australia's largest clothing maker, fell 3 cents, or 1.3 percent, to A$2.27 after its shares were cut to ``neutral'' from ``overweight'' at JPMorgan.

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL AU), Australia's second-largest oil and gas producer, added 66 cents, or 1.2 percent, to A$57.16. Crude oil added 0.6 percent to $109.99 in after hours trading.

To contact the reporter on this story: Malcolm Scott in Sydney at Mscott23@bloomberg.net.