December 8, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore upgrades Qorvo (NASDAQ:QRVO) from Equal-Weight to Overweight and raises the price target from $120 to $134.
JP Morgan analyst Arun Jayaram upgrades NOV (NYSE:NOV) from Neutral to Overweight and announces $25 price target.
Morgan Stanley analyst Andrew Percoco upgrades First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) from Equal-Weight to Overweight and raises the price target from $214 to $237.
Jefferies analyst Michael Yee upgrades ALX Oncology Holdings (NASDAQ:ALXO) from Hold to Buy and raises the price target from $8 to $18.
Deutsche Bank analyst Faiza Alwy upgrades Equifax (NYSE:EFX) from Hold to Buy and raises the price target from $218 to $267.
BMO Capital analyst Kelly Bania downgrades Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) from Outperform to Market Perform and announces $290 price target.
Deutsche Bank analyst Joe Ahlersmeyer downgrades KB Home (NYSE:KBH) from Hold to Sell and announces $46 price target.
Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore downgrades Lam Research (NASDAQ:LRCX) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and announces $720 price target.
Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore downgrades Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and announces $132 price target.
TD Cowen analyst Joseph Thome downgrades Cerevel Therapeutics Hldg (NASDAQ:CERE) from Outperform to Market Perform and announces $45 price target.
Paramount Global shares surged Friday following reports from Deadline and Puck News that Skydance and RedBird Capital were exploring potentially taking over the media giant.
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Paramount shares closed up more than 12% Friday. The company has a market cap of about $10.4 billion and its year to date share price is virtually flat, lagging the S&P 500′s 20% gain.
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Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, has been open to making big deals, especially as the company weathers the storms of declining revenue and streaming losses.
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RedBird, controlled by longtime former Goldman Sachs partner Gerry Cardinale, is invested in a variety of media and sports assets, including David Ellison’s Skydance, which helped produce Paramount’s 2022 blockbuster “Top Gun: Maverick,” among other hits.
December 7, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
Wells Fargo analyst Allison Poliniak Cusic upgrades Schneider National (NYSE:SNDR) from Underweight to Equal-Weight and raises the price target from $23 to $25.
Canaccord Genuity analyst William Plovanic upgrades Bioventus (NASDAQ:BVS) from Hold to Buy and raises the price target from $3.66 to $7.
UBS analyst Thomas Wadewitz upgrades JB Hunt Transport Servs (NASDAQ:JBHT) from Sell to Neutral and announces $205 price target.
Stifel analyst Brad Reback upgrades Datadog (NASDAQ:DDOG) from Hold to Buy and raises the price target from $98 to $140.
Raymond James analyst Danielle Brill upgrades Biogen (NASDAQ:BIIB) from Market Perform to Outperform and announces $283 price target.
Goldman Sachs analyst Matthew Sykes downgrades Danaher (NYSE:DHR) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $215 to $205.
Mizuho analyst Christopher Parkinson downgrades FMC (NYSE:FMC) from Buy to Neutral.
B of A Securities analyst Omar Dessouky downgrades Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) from Buy to Neutral and announces $170 price target.
HC Wainwright & Co. analyst Robert Burns downgrades IGM Biosciences (NASDAQ:IGMS) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $11 to $7.
B of A Securities analyst Peter Galbo downgrades Duckhorn Portfolio (NYSE:NAPA) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $15 to $11.
Lululemon on Thursday said it saw strong third-quarter demand and a positive start to the holiday shopping season, but the retailer’s shares fell in extended trading after it gave a tepid fourth-quarter outlook.
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Here’s how the company did in its third fiscal quarter:
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Earnings per share: $2.53, adjusted. It wasn’t immediately clear if the figures were comparable with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv.
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Revenue: $2.20 billion vs. $2.19 billion expected
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The company’s reported net income for the three-month period that ended Oct. 29 was $249 million, or $1.96 per share, compared with $255 million, or $2 per share, a year earlier.
December 6, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
JP Morgan analyst Arun Jayaram upgrades Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) from Neutral to Overweight and lowers the price target from $61 to $58.
Raymond James analyst Bobby Griffin upgrades AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) from Outperform to Strong Buy and raises the price target from $2850 to $3100.
Citigroup analyst Paul Lejuez upgrades Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) from Neutral to Buy and raises the price target from $93 to $119.
Guggenheim analyst Ian Zaffino upgrades Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR) from Neutral to Buy and raises the price target from $38 to $40.
Raymond James analyst Brian Vaccaro upgrades Shake Shack (NYSE:SHAK) from Outperform to Strong Buy and announces $78 price target.
Wedbush analyst Ygal Arounian downgrades Shopify (NYSE:SHOP) from Outperform to Neutral and raises the price target from $66 to $68.
B of A Securities analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith downgrades Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $17 to $16.
JP Morgan analyst Lucas Ferreira downgrades BRF (NYSE:BRFS) from Overweight to Neutral.
B of A Securities analyst Jason Kupferberg downgrades PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ:PYPL) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $77 to $66.
JP Morgan analyst Arun Jayaram downgrades EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) from Overweight to Neutral and lowers the price target from $156 to $150.
AbbVie on Wednesday said it will acquire neuroscience drugmaker Cerevel Therapeutics for roughly $8.7 billion.
Under the terms of the deal, AbbVie will pay $45 per share for Cerevel. AbbVie said it expects to complete the acquisition in the middle of 2024.
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Shares of Cerevel jumped 16% after the close Wednesday to nearly $43 per share, just below the purchase price. Shares of Abbvie were down less than 1% in extended trading.
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The deal is AbbVie’s latest attempt to expand its drug pipeline as its top-selling treatments, such as Humira, face generic competition. Just last week, AbbVie agreed to buy cancer drug developer Immunogen for nearly $10 billion.
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Cerevel will specifically beef up AbbVie’s portfolio for psychiatric and neurological disorders “where significant unmet needs remain,” according to a release from AbbVie.
December 5, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
​BTIG analyst Eric Hagen upgrades Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) from Neutral to Buy and announces $8.5 price target.
Citigroup analyst Carly Kenselaar upgrades Travere Therapeutics (NASDAQ:TVTX) from Neutral to Buy and raises the price target from $7 to $10.
Wells Fargo analyst Eric Luebchow upgrades Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI) from Underweight to Equal-Weight and raises the price target from $90 to $115.
Wells Fargo analyst Larry Biegelsen upgrades Integra Lifesciences (NASDAQ:IART) from Equal-Weight to Overweight and raises the price target from $40 to $49.
B of A Securities analyst Tazeen Ahmad upgrades Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) from Neutral to Buy and raises the price target from $52 to $85.
UBS analyst Steven Fisher downgrades United Rentals (NYSE:URI) from Buy to Neutral and raises the price target from $504 to $525.
Morgan analyst Seth Seifman downgrades Science Applications Intl (NYSE:SAIC) from Overweight to Neutral and raises the price target from $130 to $142.
Piper Sandler analyst Charles Neivert downgrades Livent (NYSE:LTHM) from Neutral to Underweight and lowers the price target from $18 to $15.
BMO Capital analyst Raj Ray downgrades Sibanye Stillwater (NYSE:SBSW) from Outperform to Market Perform and lowers the price target from $11 to $6.
Raymond James analyst Rick Patel downgrades Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) from Strong Buy to Outperform and raises the price target from $440 to $495.
It has been quite a year for both Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk given the boom in weight-loss drugs.
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Stocks of both pharmaceutical companies have rallied this year. Shares in Eli Lilly are up around 60% year-to-date, while its Danish counterpart Novo Nordisk has seen a gain of around 50%.
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As investors consider whether to buy either stock — or both — Rahul Ghosh, equity portfolio specialist at investment firm T. Rowe Price (TRP), revealed his favorite.
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“Our research suggests that Eli Lilly is probably a little bit more down the road in terms of having an oral solution. Not to say that Novo Nordisk won’t get there,” he told CNBC Pro on Nov. 29.
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“So, it’s really a question of choosing between the best and second best – but by such a small margin.”
December 4, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
KGI Securities analyst Freddy Chen upgrades Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) from Neutral to Outperform and announces $730 price target.
Wells Fargo analyst Andrew Nowinski upgrades CyberArk Software (NASDAQ:CYBR) from Equal-Weight to Overweight and announces $250 price target.
Truist Securities analyst Bertrand Hodee upgrades CNX Resources (NYSE:CNX) from Hold to Buy and raises the price target from $20 to $27.
Barclays analyst Julian Mitchell upgrades 3M (NYSE:MMM) from Underweight to Equal-Weight and raises the price target from $98 to $107.
Mizuho analyst Vijay Rakesh upgrades General Motors (NYSE:GM) from Neutral to Buy and raises the price target from $38 to $42.
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Barclays analyst Peter Lawson downgrades Immunogen (NASDAQ:IMGN) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and raises the price target from $27 to $31.
Wolfe Research analyst Alex Kania downgrades Equitrans Midstream (NYSE:ETRN) from Outperform to Peer Perform.
Wells Fargo analyst Ike Boruchow downgrades Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and announces $445 price target.
UBS analyst Felix Liu downgrades Bilibili (NASDAQ:BILI) from Buy to Neutral and lowers the price target from $22 to $13.2.
Barclays analyst Julian Mitchell downgrades Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and lowers the price target from $130 to $119.
GitLab stock jumped as much as 18% in extended trading on Monday after the developer-tools software maker announced fiscal third-quarter results and quarterly guidance that impressed Wall Street.
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Here’s how the company did, compared with consensus of estimates among analysts polled by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:
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Earnings: 9 cents per share, adjusted, vs. loss of 1 cent per share expected.
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Revenue: $149.7 million, vs. $141.5 million expected.
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This marks the first time GitLab has posted an adjusted operating profit.
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“We continue to grow responsibly and delivered over 2,200 basis points of non-GAAP operating margin expansion,” the company’s finance chief, Brian Robins, was quoted as saying in a statement.
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December 1, 2023
Upgrades
Downgrades
News
Piper Sandler analyst Brian Mullan downgrades Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) from Overweight to Neutral and announces $110 price target.
Ladenburg Thalmann analyst Jon Hickman downgrades Chicken Soup for the Soul (NASDAQ:CSSE) from Buy to Neutral.
Citigroup analyst Jason Bazinet downgrades Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) from Buy to Neutral and announces $190 price target.
Morgan Stanley analyst Gary Yu downgrades Alibaba Gr Holding (NYSE:BABA) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and lowers the price target from $110 to $90.
BMO Capital analyst Etzer Darout downgrades Immunogen (NASDAQ:IMGN) from Outperform to Market Perform and announces $31 price target.
Piper Sandler analyst Brian Mullan downgrades Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) from Overweight to Neutral and announces $110 price target.
Ladenburg Thalmann analyst Jon Hickman downgrades Chicken Soup for the Soul (NASDAQ:CSSE) from Buy to Neutral.
Citigroup analyst Jason Bazinet downgrades Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) from Buy to Neutral and announces $190 price target.
Morgan Stanley analyst Gary Yu downgrades Alibaba Gr Holding (NYSE:BABA) from Overweight to Equal-Weight and lowers the price target from $110 to $90.
BMO Capital analyst Etzer Darout downgrades Immunogen (NASDAQ:IMGN) from Outperform to Market Perform and announces $31 price target.
Media stocks jumped Friday following a Wall Street Journal report that Apple and Paramount Global are in early-stage talks to offer a bundle of the two company’s streaming platforms.
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The companies have talked about bundling Apple TV+ and Paramount+ in an offering that would cost less than subscribing to the two separately, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
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Shares of Paramount closed up nearly 10% Friday, while Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns streaming service Max, closed up more than 8%. Paramount is down about 6% on the year, while Warner Bros. Discovery, which reported a streaming profit in the third quarter, is up about 19%.
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Apple and Paramount did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.