Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
SELL SNAP: Citi analyst Jason Bazinet downgraded Snap (SNAP) to Sell from Neutral with a price target of $14, up from $10. The analyst argued that investor expectations for 2020 and 2021 revenues are too high. And if that proves true, Snap is trading near the peak of its historical valuation, the analyst added. He believes investors are now too bullish on both the company's daily active user growth and monetization trends. While Snap initially benefited from stay at home orders with increased user engagement, third-party data suggests momentum may not be sustainable, Bazinet contended.
LACK ON CONFIDENCE ON TRAVEL REBOUND: Deutsche Bank analyst Lloyd Walmsley downgraded TripAdvisor (TRIP) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $21, down from $45. The analyst sees "some slightly signs" of a pickup in booking intent in the U.S., but his confidence in the pace of recovery in travel over the medium term is now lower than it was in early March. Walmsley reduced numbers for TripAdvisor and downgraded the shares on the view that share shift toward larger online travel agencies will make ad auctions less competitive coming out of the pandemic. The analyst prefers "larger companies more in control of their destiny." He also reduced room nights estimates for Booking Holdings (BKNG) and Expedia (EXPE) to be 75% and 70% of 2019 levels in 2021, recovering to approximately 2019 levels in the second half of 2022.
MOVING TO THE SIDELINES: DA Davidson analyst Tom Forte downgraded Pinterest (PINS) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $19, down from $21. The analyst noted that the outbreak of COVID-19 is having a greater negative impact on the company's monetization than he had initially forecast. Forte added that while Pinterest is moving forward with its plans to invest in the business, the incremental spending combined with sales pressure will result in greater adjusted EBITDA losses than he initially projected.
BUY NIO INC.: Bank of America analyst Ming Hsun Lee upgraded NIO Inc. (NIO) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $5, up from $3.40, as he turns more positive given his higher volume sales forecasts for 2020-2021 and his view that the new EV purchase subsidy scheme should support the company. The analyst also sees less uncertainty associated with fundraising after the investment agreement with the Hefei government and thinks the company is likely to see improved vehicle gross margin given its cost-reduction measures and increased sales.
RECOVERY LAG FOR SUPPLIERS: SunTrust analyst Barry Jonas downgraded International Game (IGT) and PlayAGS (AGS) to Hold from Buy as he believes gaming tech suppliers will lag operators in a recovery, with potentially "severe hits to revenues" coming in the near-term and some uncertainty beyond that. For PlayAGS, the analyst is positive on the company's tribal exposure and its possibility of a quicker recovery, but is concerned over its higher relative exposure to a challenged North America gaming market while still recovering from "strategic missteps" last year. For International Game, Jonas is positive on the company's "resilient" Lottery exposure, but sees a shrinking free cash flow generation window as increasing government budgets heighten tax risks in Italy.
Snap
-0.12 (-0.68%)
TripAdvisor
-0.13 (-0.71%)
Booking Holdings
-7.74 (-0.56%)
Expedia
-0.37 (-0.58%)
-2.87 (-13.77%)
Nio
+0.195 (+5.93%)
International Game
-0.28 (-3.89%)
PlayAGS
-0.16 (-4.13%)