SunTrust analyst Michael Ciarmoli initiated Cubic with a Hold rating and a price target of $74. The analyst believes that the company stands to exploit the favorable demand trends impacting the global transportation and defense markets with its core technologies that include instrumentation, secure network communications, simulation and data visualization. Ciarmoli also cites the 6% increase in U.S. defense budget and the 12% growth in the company's core Department of Defense programs, but notes that he is taking a "conservative" stance on the stock because of the uncertainty in the transportation segment performance and a weakening global economy.