JD.com upgraded, Paycom downgraded: Wall Street's top analyst calls
The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today's research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.
Top 5 Upgrades:
UBS upgraded JD.com (JD) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $39, down from $40. UBS sees an attractive valuation at current share levels with the company's net cash roughly equal to 50% of its market cap.
Loop Capital upgraded Cirrus Logic (CRUS) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $100, up from $83. The stock offers a unique opportunity emerging for both the company and investors, as Cirrus Logic can level up its earnings per share to $7.00 - $10.00 in the coming years from about $6.00 currently amid a "handful of shots on goal" given the steady cadence of new Apple (AAPL) hardware content opportunities emerging, the firm tells investors in a research note.
Goldman Sachs upgraded Boeing (BA) to the firm's Conviction List and keeps a Buy rating on the shares with a $258 price target. The firm believes investors are more focused on near-term disruptions than long-term fundamentals and normalized free cash flow, creating a buying opportunity "in this domestic half of the global aircraft manufacturing duopoly."
Barclays upgraded General Motors (GM) and Ford (F) to Overweight from Equal Weight with unchanged price targets of $37 and $14, respectively. The firm cites "historically cheap" valuations, but prefers GM over Ford.
Stifel upgraded Saia (SAIA) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $425, up from $412, post the Q3 report. Stifel believes "there's opportunity for more," with gradual margin improvement as labor proficiency improves, as density builds, and as core pricing continues to expand.
Top 5 Downgrades:
Needham downgraded Paycom (PAYC) to Hold from Buy with no price target. The company's Q3 revenue was below the low end of guidance and its Q4 outlook was below the previously implied midpoint, with BETI revenue cannibalization being much greater than the firm previously estimated, the firm tells investors in a research note. William Blair, Citi, Stifel, Piper Sandler, TD Cowen, Deutsche Bank, KeyBanc, and Oppenheimer also downgraded the stock to Neutral-equivalent ratings.
Goldman Sachs downgraded ZoomInfo (ZI) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $17, down from $30, following the company's "mixed" Q3 report and "soft" forward guidance.
TD Cowen downgraded Paychex (PAYX) to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $202, down from $331. The company's Q3 featured a missed quarter on growth and a transition period through 2024 primarily due to Beti revenue cannibalization impacts on its base, the firm tells investors in a research note.
BofA downgraded Xponential Fitness (XPOF) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $16, down from $35. The firm views the risk/reward as now more balanced given that it estimates that many franchisees across the Pure Barre, Row House, AKT and Stride brands that required financing may not be profitable and that the recent rise in interest rates may be pressuring the returns of new locations.
OTR Global downgraded its view on PVH Corp. (PVH) to Negative from Mixed, citing checks that showed Q3 sales plan attainment in Western Europe and at U.S. outlets deteriorated quarter-over-quarter.
Top 5 Initiations:
TD Cowen initiated coverage of American Express (AXP) with a Market Perform rating and $158 price target. The company is seeing headwinds on volume growth as its key spending categories are likely to slow over the coming months, the firm tells investors in a research note.
JPMorgan initiated coverage of Six Flags (SIX) with an Underweight rating and $16 price target. The firm sees theme parks as a "market share donor post-pandemic" and downside risk to Six Flags' consensus estimates over the next 18 months.
TD Cowen initiated coverage of Capital One (COF) with a Market Perform rating and $108 price target. The firm says Capital One will need to demonstrate more significant improvement in efficiency.
Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage of VinFast Auto (VFS) with an Overweight rating and $7 price target. The firm believes the company benefits from more affordably priced EVs, vertical integration and manufacturing in Vietnam, and the financial and brand backing of Vingroup.
Piper Sandler initiated coverage of Polestar Automotive (PSNY) with an Overweight rating and $3 price target. Valuations are under pressure for electric vehicle startups, and Polestar is no exception, but unlike many other stocks in this sector, Polestar "warrants consideration," the firm tells investors in a research note.
