Netflix upgrades, Lowe's downgrade and Home Depot initiation among today's top calls on Wall Street Institutional investors and professional traders rely on The Fly to learn which companies the best analysts on Wall Street are saying to buy and sell.
Research analysts at Wall Street's largest banks issue recommendations on whether a stock should be bought, held, or sold. The Fly's team of financial market experts scours hundreds of research notes daily to uncover the best trading ideas. Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
Top 5 Upgrades:
- Deutsche Bank analyst Bryan Kraft upgraded Netflix (NFLX) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $350, up from $270, following the company’s quarterly results. The analyst now sees visibility into a subscriber growth inflection point next year given that Netflix management has confirmed both the early 2023 introduction of its new measures designed to better monetize account sharing, and the early November timing of its advertising-based video on demand tier launch in 12 top markets. JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth also upgraded Netflix to Overweight from Neutral with a price target of $330, up from $240.
- Baird analyst Peter Arment upgraded Lockheed Martin (LMT) to Outperform from Neutral with an unchanged price target of $513. Given the multi-year free cash flow outlook offered and 2023 guidance that met Street expectations, headline risks have been reduced, "leaving little for bears," Arment told investors.
- JPMorgan analyst Anne Samuel upgraded Veeva Systems (VEEV) to Neutral from Underweight with a price target of $170, down from $225. While the company's growth profile has decelerated and macro headwinds are pressuring the near-term, Veeva is not "structurally broken," Samuel told investors in a research note.
- Jefferies analyst Lloyd Byrne upgraded Exxon Mobil (XOM) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $133, up from $90, as he assumed coverage of the shares.
- BofA analyst Lawson Winder upgraded IAMGold (IAG) to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $1.65, up from $1.20. The company's sale of Rosebel Gold Mines for $360M is well above his carrying value of $177M and represents a strong step in addressing the funding gap for the development of Cote Gold mine, the analyst told investors in a research note.
Top 5 Downgrades:
- Evercore ISI analyst Greg Melich downgraded Lowe's (LOW) to In Line from Outperform with a $210 price target, down from $220. While Melich believes Lowe's management can get margins to 13% over time, further short-term slowdown of home improvement demand could trip the growth path.
- Evercore ISI analyst Greg Melich downgraded Best Buy (BBY) to In Line from Outperform with a price target of $70, down from $80. Melich believes Best Buy comps could continue to run negative into 2023 as deflation sets in, telling investors in a research note that the firm is already seeing initial signs of consumer electronics deflation, and elevated inventory levels could put pressure on Best Buy's margins in the second half of 2022. The analyst also downgraded Advanced Auto Parts (AAP) to In Line from Outperform.
- Craig-Hallum analyst Alex Nowak downgraded Exact Sciences (EXAS) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $35, down from $60. The analyst sees asymmetric risk forming in Exact Sciences' shares and the likelihood shares could be capped.
- Evercore ISI analyst Robert Ottenstein downgraded Boston Beer (SAM) to In Line from Outperform with an unchanged price target of $330. He believes that estimates for 2023 are "too high" and that the stock may need some time for investors to regain confidence.
- JPMorgan analyst Andrea Teixeira double downgraded Olaplex Holdings (OLPX) to Underweight from Overweight with a price target of $8, down from $16, after the company announced a substantial guidance cut for 2022 did not affirm its medium-term targets. BofA analyst Jonathan Keypour also double downgraded Olaplex Holdings to Underperform from Buy, while Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, Raymond James, and Evercore ISI cut the stock to Neutral-equivalent ratings.
Top 5 Initiations:
- Cowen analyst Max Rakhlenko initiated coverage of Home Depot (HD) with an Outperform rating and $350 price target. Rakhlenko is constructive on the opportunity to grow share, increase sales productivity, accelerate the flywheel, and expand EBIT margin as Home Depot's Pro ecosystem comes together. The analyst also started coverage of Lowe’s with a Market Perform rating.
- Craig-Hallum analyst Alexander Nowak initiated coverage of Guardant Health (GH) with a Buy rating and a price target of $88. Ten years since Guardant's foundation and five years as a public company are just a precursor to its potential, says the analyst, who believes the company will "dramatically change" cancer care in the next five years using liquid biopsies.
- Barrington analyst Vincent Colicchio initiated coverage of Wayside Technology (WSTG) with an Outperform rating and $40 price target. Wayside's strategy of partnering early with "disruptive technology vendors early helps drive rapid growth, the analyst argues.
- Piper Sandler analyst Harsh Kumar initiated coverage of D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) with an Overweight rating and $12 price target. The analyst noted that D-Wave is one of the very few revenue-producing companies with a functional quantum computer today.
- Goldman Sachs analyst Gabriela Borges initiated coverage of EverCommerce (EVCM) with a Sell rating and $8 price target. While constructive on EverCommerce's ability to further penetrate its target verticals, the analyst believes it will be difficult for the company to execute its growth strategy over the following 12 months.
Symbols:
NFLX - $271.65 /
+30.63 (+12.71%)
LMT VEEV XOM IAG LOW BBY AAP EXAS SAM OLPX HD GH WSTG QBTS EVCM Keywords: analyst, analyst calls, upgrades, downgrades, initiations, research, wall street