Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
JEFFERIES BOOSTS TESLA PRICE TARGET TO $400: Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois raised his price target for Tesla (TSLA) to $400 from $300, saying the company's risk profile continues to improve. Tesla's gross margin levels in Q3 are consistent with sustained profitability and its average selling prices should stabilize ahead of improvements in the second half of 2020, Houchois told investors in a research note. Stabilization in 2019 "sets a better foundation" for a return to growth in 2020 revenue and earnings, added the analyst. Houchois, who continues to see Tesla maintaining its edge in product, affordability and technology, kept a Buy rating on the shares.
UBS UPS NVIDIA PRICE TARGET TO $240: UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri raised his price target on Nvidia (NVDA) shares to $240 from $195 ahead of the company's October quarter earnings report, and kept a Buy rating on the chipmaker. He models quarterly revenue and EPS of $2.91B and $1.61, respectively, which he notes is "more or less" in-line with consensus, but he still sees a path higher for the stock despite the fact that it has outperformed both the S&P 500 and S&P 500 Semis by a "wide margin" over the last three months. Data is starting to play out to prove strength in gaming as ray tracing becomes standard and in the data center as the new 7nm product should be announced next week, said Arcuri. He thinks "performance-focused" customers like Google (GOOG, GOOGL) are waiting for this new 7nm product and that others are building it into their 2020 roadmaps, the analyst added.
Additionally, Deutsche Bank analyst Ross Seymore raised his price target for Nvidia to $190 from $160 ahead of the company's Q3 results, but kept a Hold rating on Nvidia shares.
MORGAN STANLEY CUTS QUALCOMM TO EQUAL WEIGHT: Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette downgraded Qualcomm (QCOM) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $90, up from $89. He noted that the stock is up 33% since August as Qualcomm's multiple has expanded relative to other semiconductor companies, which Faucette attributed to the market assigning a high probability of a China-U.S. trade agreement, investors becoming more comfortable in a view that the FTC case won't materially impact the company's business, and expectations for the coming of 5G. Following that outperformance, he sees the risk/reward being more balance and thinks the stock will perform more in-line with peers, Faucette told investors.
MORGAN STANLEY ALSO CUTS LUMENTUM: Morgan Stanley analyst Meta Marshall downgraded Lumentum (LITE) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $68, up from $65. Operating margins have improved 300-400 basis points year-over-year since the Oclaro transaction closed and 3D sensing inventory correction issues that disrupted the trajectory last year did not repeat this year, noted Marshall, who thinks the "low hanging fruit" has been captured for now given the stock's multiple appreciation. She also noted that the market view that a trade deal will be signed has increased, and while Marshall said she "fully expects" that peak can be achieved when a deal is signed and she does feel like there is pent-up demand out of China, she also thinks enthusiasm could fade back to current levels given orders may not pop back immediately.
PIPER JAFFRAY LOWERS CISCO TO NEUTRAL: Piper Jaffray analyst James Fish downgraded Cisco Systems (CSCO) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $51, down from $55. The analyst citied a slowing macro environment across Enterprise and Service Provider, cycles hitting a peak earlier this year, a lack of a near-term catalyst, and risk to fiscal 2020 and 2021 estimates for the downgrade. However, he sees share downside as "fairly limited from here," with Cisco's software transition producing better free cash flow, its 3% dividend yield, and "material 2021 catalysts" like 5G and 400G switching. Fish just sees better opportunities for out-performance in other parts of his coverage.
DEUTSCHE BANK DOWNGRADES L BRANDS: Deutsche Bank analyst Paul Trussell downgraded L Brands (LB) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $20, down from $31. The analyst's monthly promo watch indicates promotions remain at elevated levels. He believes most investors are cautious on Retailers heading into the Holiday, despite a generally healthy U.S. consumer, given a shorter window between Thanksgiving and Christmas as well as concerns around the promotional environment leading to bloated inventories. The analyst also lowered his price target for Sell-rated Macy's (M) to $32 from $36 and for Hold-rated Dillard's (DDS) to $22 from $23.
Tesla
+7.55 (+2.24%)
Nvidia
-1.4 (-0.67%)
Qualcomm
-1.97 (-2.09%)
Lumentum
-1.04 (-1.56%)
Cisco
-0.6 (-1.23%)
L Brands
-0.36 (-2.03%)