Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
JEFFERIES BOOSTS INTEL TO HOLD: Jefferies analyst Mark Lipacis upgraded Intel (INTC) to Hold from Underperform with a price target of $64, up from $40. He sees three catalysts that "set the table for dramatic change in 2020-21," namely the fact that ten long-standing senior executives have left Intel in the past six months, the fact that the company has ceded transistor leadership in the industry for the "first time in decades," and the fact that the CEO's bonus plan includes a $30M performance bonus that kicks in should the stock hit $62 for 30 days. He assumes that the company will divest its memory business and cuts its operating expenses, though he sees a low-near term probability of Intel transitioning to a fabless model that enabled it to close the transistor gap with AMD (AMD) in servers.
KEYBANC UPGRADES L BRANDS TO OVERWEIGHT: KeyBanc analyst Edward Yruma upgraded L Brands (LB) to Overweight from Sector Weight with a $25 price target. The "stark differential" in performance between Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works, and lack of any discernible turnaround at Victoria's Secret, makes a value creating transaction more likely, Yruma wrote in a research note partially titled "The Worse Comps Get, the Better the Stock." Efforts to unlock value at Bath & Body are now more likely, contended the analyst. He believes a standalone Bath & Body Works business "should be a highly attractive asset." Further, the analyst still sees value in Victoria's Secret even though a potential turnaround could take time. Yruma thinks a sale of the Victoria's Secret business could approximate $4 to $6 per share in value.
OPPENHEIMER RAISES COSTCO TO OUTPERFORM: Oppenheimer analyst Rupesh Parikh upgraded Costco (COST) to Outperform from Perform with a price target of $335, up from $300. The analyst also re-established the stock as a top pick, while noting that recent underperformance creates an attractive entry point. As he looks to the balance of 2020, Parikh overall sees a muted upside outlook for his food retailing universe, but believes Costco and Dollar General (DG) can deliver outsized gains versus peers in this backdrop.
MORGAN STANLEY DOWNGRADES LUMBER LIQUIDATORS TO UNDERWEIGHT: Morgan Stanley analyst Simeon Gutman downgraded Lumber Liquidators (LL) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $5, down from $9. In retail more broadly, he thinks it will be hard to repeat the strong performance of 2019 given tough comparisons, slower growth and the consumer decelerating and for Lumber Liquidators in particular he has concerns about lower earnings power, Gutman told investors.
CITI CUTS MORGAN STANLEY TO NEUTRAL: Citi analyst Keith Horowitz downgraded Morgan Stanley (MS) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $50, down from $68. While the company's return on tangible equity targets look achievable, the stock looks fairly valued, Horowitz said. The analyst still favors the brokers over the traditional banks given their "relatively low" exposure to net interest revenue pressures and credit risk. However, with Morgan Stanley's recent outperformance and limited upside to earnings estimates, he does not see enough upside to justify a Buy rating on the stock.
Intel
+1.1 (+1.85%)
L Brands
+0.24 (+1.19%)
Costco
+6.78 (+2.23%)
Dollar General
+ (+0.00%)
LL Flooring
-0.89 (-9.52%)
Morgan Stanley
-2 (-3.48%)