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Fly News Breaks for August 16, 2018
VFC, UAA, UA, NKE, ATVI, COTY, KMB, LULU
Aug 16, 2018 | 10:06 EDT
Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly. ARGUS SAYS BUY LULULEMON: Argus analyst John Staszak upgraded Lululemon (LULU) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $150, citing the company's Q1 earnings beat and expectations of improved comps in Q2, along with its "substantial" growth opportunities to expand its brand overseas and particularly in China. Staszak contends that Lululemon's growth prospects are "among the best in the apparel sector," with a transition to higher margin e-commerce sales seen expanding its operating margins in the coming several years. The analyst further notes that his implied price target valuation multiple of 44-times forward earnings is within the multiple range of companies like Nike (NKE), Under Armour (UA), and VF Corp. (VFC) and justified by its rapid e-commerce adoption and strong overall growth. KIMBERLY-CLARK RAISED AFTER PRICE HIKES: JPMorgan analyst Andrea Teixeira upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark (KMB) to Neutral from Underweight and raised her price target to $114 from $90 following yesterday's announcement that the company will increase prices or reduce package counts on key products in North America. The analyst notes that while it remains to be seen if the price increases will "actually hold" given the intensely competitive U.S. market, she believes investors will give Kimberly-Clark shares the benefit of the doubt. Additionally, she tells investors that Procter & Gamble's (PG) commentary that it plans to raise prices on some of its premium paper products and diapers is "supportive" of Kimberly-Clark's ability to pass on higher prices. COTY CUT TWO NOTCHES AT MERRILL: BofA Merrill Lynch analyst Olivia Tong double downgraded Coty to Underperform from Buy and cut its price target to $10 from $16. Tong said Coty is now more exposed to the mass beauty market following its merger with 41 brands from PG Beauty and is seeing disruption from smaller, niche brands and newer distribution channels. ACTIVISION PULLBACK SEEN AS OPPORTUNITY: Jefferies analyst Timothy O'Shea said he views China having frozen mobile game approvals as a temporary problem and "mostly a non-issue" as only the monetization approval process has been frozen, not the content approval process, and he notes administrators are already implementing a fast-track approval process to alleviate the problem. Activision Blizzard (ATVI) has a pipeline of new mobile games coming that he would still expect to launch in China over time and O'Shea sees the 15% pullback in the game maker's shares in the last month as a buying opportunity, he tells investors. He maintains a Buy rating and $90 price target on Activision shares.