** Shares of conglomerate Wesfarmers WES.AX rise as much as 3.2% to A$77.06

** Brokerage UBS raises co's stock rating to "neutral" from "sell", hikes price target to A$76 from A$69

** UBS says co has strong growth options across all divisions

** Sees sales growth at home improvement chain Bunnings accelerating, with EBIT margins supported by technology, retail media & supply chain investments

** Brokerage adds Bunnings' addressable market is large and growing and it has opportunities to expand to new categories

** WES stock is top gainer on consumer discretionary sub-index .AXDJ, which is up 1.5%

** As of last close, Wesfarmers stock up 4.4% YTD

(Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru)

((Himanshi.Akhand@thomsonreuters.com;))