This Week, From The Analyst Community

Stock analysts can provide valuable insight into the sentiment around a certain stock or sector and shed some light on what is possible or likely for a stock.  Stirrings in the analyst community can sometimes be early signs of stock movement.  Which is why our team reviews dozens of analyst research reports each and every day with the goal of finding new investment ideas for our readers. 

Of the hundred of reports we reference weekly, some stand out among the others for various reasons.  Our team has sifted through this week’s reports and whittled it down to the most pertinent moves.   

Read on for the details on some of the most impactful actions taken by brokerage firms over the past week.   

Monday, March 28th

• Piper Sandler analyst Michael Lavery downgraded Beyond Meat (BYND) to Underweight from Neutral with a price target of $29, down from $50.  The analyst remains bearish on the company’s key fundamentals, saying competitive intensity is growing, including a launch by Motif Foodworks. Lavery lowered his U.S. expectations for Beyond’s McDonald’s launch and says the company continues to burn cash with no clear path to positive EBITDA.

• Goldman Sachs analyst Toshiya Hari maintained a Buy rating on AMD (AMD), but removed the stock from the Conviction List, with a price target of $127 implying 6% potential upside. 

Tuesday, March 29th

• Argus analyst Taylor Conrad upgraded AutoZone (AZO) to Buy from Hold with a $2,210 price target.  The company’s earnings have rebounded from their pandemic lows and have now topped Street expectations for the past seven quarters, the analyst told investors in a research note.

• Goldman Sachs analyst Jason English double downgraded Reynolds Consumer Products (REYN) to Sell from Buy with a price target of $26, down from $34.  The analyst updated his consumer staples coverage to mark-to-market for recent commodity inflation and currency volatility following Russia’s Ukraine invasion.

• Truist analyst Jordan Levy initiated coverage of Enviva Partners (EVA) with a Buy rating and $100 price target. The company is a leading global wood pellet producer for biomass energy, having positioned itself to enter into a new growth phase benefiting from themes of industrial decarbonization and energy security, the analyst told investors in a research note.

• Credit Suisse analyst Michael Binetti downgraded RealReal (REAL) to Neutral from Outperform with a price target of $8, down from $15.  The analyst is “disappointed” by guidance to only $100M+ of EBITDA by 2025 considering consensus was already at $109M, and believes RealReal’s path to profitability is significantly longer and requires much more gross merchandise value versus the initial IPO model to achieve profitability.

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Wednesday, March 30th

• Jefferies analyst David Katz upgraded Host Hotels (HST) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $25, up from $20.  It is evident in the pace of the broader recovery that “market exposures matter” and portfolio make-up makes the difference, said Katz, who believes the asset trades and positioning of Host shares should outperform those of Park Hotels & Resorts (PK), which he has simultaneously downgraded to Hold from Buy.

• Goldman Sachs analyst Michael Ng initiated coverage of PayPal (PYPL) with a Buy rating and $144 price target.  The analyst expects PayPal to return to earnings growth in excess of 20% beyond 2022, which he says could drive a re-rating of its valuation multiple.  Ng also started coverage of Block (SQ) with a Buy rating and $173 price target as he believes the company is well positioned to benefit from Cash App’s growing monetization from new product features while enjoying ongoing user growth from the network effects of people-to-people payments.

• UBS analyst Cody Ross initiated coverage of Campbell Soup (CPB) with a Sell rating and $42 price target as he believes demand for soup will wane as consumer mobility increases.  The analyst also noted that it will be tough for Campbell to increase price enough to recover margin without suffering “meaningful share losses.”  Ross also started J.M. Smucker (SJM) with a Sell rating and a price target of $123.

Thursday, March 31st

• Citi analyst Paul Lejuez upgraded Five Below (FIVE) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $205, up from $176.  The analyst noted that the company laid out long-term financial targets through fiscal 2025 at its investor day, which call for “industry-leading” annual sales growth of 19%.

• Barclays analyst Blayne Curtis downgraded AMD (AMD) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $115, down from $148. The company’s growth story “needs a pause” with cyclical risks looming in 2023, Curtis told investors in a research note.

• Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring downgraded HP Inc. (HPQ) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $31, down from $34. Given HP has greater exposure to the consumer and education than commercial, the PC demand weakness will manifest in slowing sales growth, Woodring told investors in a research note. The analyst also downgraded Dell Technologies (DELL) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $60, down from $66.

• US Tiger analyst Bo Pei initiated coverage of Coinbase (COIN) with a Sell rating and $135 price target.  The analyst notes that Coinbase’s revenue is primarily a function of crypto market performance and transaction fees, and sees competition intensifying almost in all aspects.

Friday, April 1st

• Stephens analyst Vincent Caintic initiated coverage of Upstart (UPST) with an Equal Weight rating and $124 price target.  His view on Upstart is “cautious” and his target reflects a “Sum Of The Funding Parts” analysis where he values bank funding highest and values institutional investor securitizations lowest, Caintic tells investors.

• Barclays analyst Adrienne Yih downgraded Gap (GPS) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $13, down from $17. The analyst downgraded the retail sector to Neutral citing dollar inventory risk from cost inflation, unit inventory risk from earlier receipts and more weeks of supply, and pass through pricing risk from locking in peak inflationary costs well ahead of unknown demand.  Yih also downgraded Wayfair (W) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $103, down from $123.

• Citi analyst George Choi upgraded Wynn Resorts (WYNN) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $96.50, down from $98. The analyst likes Wynn for its increasing dedication to Premium Mass in Macau.  Also, the stock is trading an “undemanding” valuation multiple, Choi tells investors in a research note.

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