Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
COWEN UPS 'PREMIER DEFENSE GROWTH BIG CAP' NORTHROP: Cowen analyst Cai von Rumohr upgraded Northrop Grumman (NOC) to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $370, up from $360. The company is "ideally positioned" for the Department of Defense's National Defense Strategy, von Rumohr tells investors in a research note. The analyst sees accelerating organic growth and above-average financial flexibility for Northrop Grumman. Northrop is the "premier defense growth big cap among a shrinking number of choices," says von Rumohr.
PAYPAL DOWNGRADED AT BMO: BMO Capital analyst James Fotheringham downgraded PayPal (PYPL) to Market Perform from Outperform with an unchanged price target of $156. The analyst cites a shift in investment strategy towards "credit-sensitive sub-sectors" in Financial Technology for the downgrade. As we transition to the recovery side of the current COVID-19 crisis, investors should switch into credit-sensitive financials like Capital One (COF), Citi (C) and Ally Financial (ALLY) that offer higher investment returns than PayPal's current return of only 9%, Fotheringham tells investors in a research note. The analyst sees limited upside to PayPal's valuation multiple.
AURORA CANNABIS UPGRADED AT PIPER: Piper Sandler analyst Michael Lavery upgraded Aurora Cannabis (ACB) to Neutral from Underweight with a price target of $10, down from $12, following the company's fiscal Q3 results. Aurora is working through significant cost savings initiatives and appears to have stabilized its sales momentum, Lavery tells investors in a research note. The company's European sales have resumed, and have recovered better than previously expected, adds the analyst. Further, he believes Aurora's value brand, Daily Special, can likely drive further share gains from industry down-trading and the illicit market.
WAYFAIR DOWNGRADED TO SELL: Citi analyst Nicholas Jones downgraded Wayfair (W) to Sell from Neutral with a price target of $130, up from $75. The stock closed Thursday down $10.86 to $172.94. Despite estimates moving higher on better than anticipated trends, Wayfair shares are overvalued, Jones tells investors in a research note. Though the retailer is seeing a near-term benefit from shelter-in-place and social distancing measures, trends will revert to that of a pre-COVID environment, contends the analyst. Long term, Jones believes the adoption of online channels will likely have increased. However, the cost to maintain order volume will also increase back to pre-COVID levels, pressuring Wayfair's profitability, says the analyst.
WIX UPGRADED, INITIATED: Raymond James analyst Aaron Kessler upgraded Wix.com (WIX) to Outperform from Market Perform with a $222 price target following Q1 results, citing a significant acceleration since April for its website presence solutions. Kessler believes COVID-19 is driving a step function in DIY platforms as SMBs are now feeling the urgency to have an online presence, something that is likely to last past shelter-in-place as well as SMBs will want to be prepared in the future. He thinks Wix remains best positioned among DIY platforms.
JMP Securities analyst Ronald Josey initiated coverage of Wix.com with an Outperform rating and $210 price target. The analyst calls the company's reported 207% growth in new premium subscribers in April impressive, with a more positive view on the shares coming out of its Q1 earnings beat amid "accelerating top-of-funnel demand, improving conversion rates, and greater product adoption." Josey expects these trends to continue based on the digital shift among small-to-medium size businesses.
Northrop Grumman
+3.09 (+0.99%)
PayPal
-2 (-1.38%)
Capital One
-1.7 (-2.87%)
Citi
-0.78 (-1.85%)
Ally Financial
-0.22 (-1.46%)
Aurora Cannabis
+2.09 (+31.62%)
Wayfair
-5.95 (-3.44%)
Wix.com
-0.79 (-0.42%)