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☆ Wall Street analysts cheer Alphabet earnings, see more gains ahead for tech giant
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Google-parent Alphabet posted strong second-quarter numbers that had many Wall Street analysts gushing. Goldman Sachs analyst Eric Sheridan reaffirmed a buy rating on Alphabet stock, with his $152 price target implying more than 24% upside. Citi's Ronald Josey maintained a buy rating on with a higher $153 price target, which amounts to more than 25% upside for Alphabet stock. "As revenue growth reaccelerates on an improving online advertising environment and management's greater focus on operating efficiencies, we look for margins to expand going forward as revenue growth consistently outpaces opex growth," Josey said. Wells Fargo analyst Ken Gawrelski reiterated an equal weight rating on Alphabet stock on Wednesday, although with an increased $121 per share price target.

Persons: Morgan Stanley's Brian Nowak, Nowak, Bard, OpenAI, Goldman Sachs, Eric Sheridan, Sheridan, Bank of America's Justin Post, Citi's Ronald Josey, Josey, Wells, Ken Gawrelski, Michael Bloom Organizations: Google, Refinitiv, GOOGL, Microsoft, Bank of America's, Citi, Google Cloud Services, DOJ

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Disney, Costco, Nike, Imax, Walmart, Meta & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Here are Tuesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: UBS reiterates Nike as buy UBS said it's getting incrementally bullish on the stock and that it could double. " BTIG upgrades Zscaler to buy from neutral BTIG said its checks on the IT stock have been "consistently positive." Morgan Stanley reiterates Apple as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's standing by its overweight rating heading into Apple earnings next week. Goldman Sachs reiterates Apple as buy Goldman said it's standing by its buy rating heading into earnings next week. Morgan Stanley names Elevance a top pick Morgan Stanley named the health insurance provider as a top pick and said it sees further earnings per share growth.

Persons: it's, Morgan Stanley, Apple, Piper Sandler, Wells, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Mizuho, Oppenheimer, TSCO, Citi downgrades Goldman Sachs, TD Cowen, Wolfe, Baird, HWM, Elevance, Comm, Flywire Organizations: UBS, Nike, Apple, Walmart, Piper, Signet, Superior Unit, Costco, Citi, adv, 2Q, Meta, Digital Ad, Bank of America downgrades, Supply, Bank of America, HSBC, Zynga, Disney, Mizuho, Howmet Aerospace, Airbus Locations: Wells Fargo, 2Q23

☆ Here are Wednesday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, AT&T, Tesla, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Spotify and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

JPMorgan adds Qualcomm and HP Inc. to the focus list JPMorgan added HP Inc. to the focus list and said it's a top value idea. The firm also added Qualcomm to the focus list and says it's a top growth idea. JPMorgan adds Charles Schwab to the focus list JPMorgan added the stock to its focus list after its earnings report and said it sees "improving fundamentals." Bank of America reiterates Amazon as buy Bank of America said it's bullish heading into Amazon earnings later this month. Bank of America reiterates Block as buy Bank of America said shares of the company formerly known as Square are undervalued.

Persons: Tesla, it's, Charles Schwab, Schwab, Jefferies, Berkshire Hathaway, Archer, Guggenheim, ServiceNow Organizations: JPMorgan, Qualcomm, HP Inc, Watch, Cisco, " Bank of America, of America, Bank of America, Meta, UBS, Berkshire, Citi, Republic Services, Hollywood, Argus, Street, Aviation, UW, DuPont, Texas, Microsoft, Apple Locations: 2023E, 2025E, Berkshire, ACHR, EE

☆ TD Cowen upgrades Meta as social media stock enters second half of 'Year of Efficiency'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

TD Cowen has joined the bullish majority on Meta with just half of the social media company's "Year of Efficiency" in the rearview mirror. Analyst John Blackledge upgraded the Facebook parent's stock to outperform from market perform and raised his price target to $345 from $220. META 5Y mountain Meta shares over the last five years Blackledge said Wall Street will likely need to raise estimates, pointing to potential monetization growth in Reels. A Cowen survey shows Reels has grown engagement and helped raised overall time spent on Instagram. Cowen raised revenue and earnings estimates by 8% and 7%, respectively, on average over the next five years and is above consensus estimates for both second quarter and full-year earnings.

Persons: TD Cowen, John Blackledge, mgmt, Blackledge, Cowen, Mark Zuckerberg, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Meta, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter Locations: Wednesday's

☆ Morgan Stanley sees this budget car rental stock adding to its already strong gains for 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Avis shouldn't be overlooked in the rental car space, according to Morgan Stanley. Analyst Adam Jonas upgraded the budget rental car company to overweight from equal rate and hiked his price target to $230 from $182. Jonas' new target implies the stock could rise 12.6% in the next year. "With the backdrop of normalization in the rental industry, we look for operational execution to preserve what could now be a higher floor for the industry," Jonas said in a note to clients Tuesday. But even in this environment, he said both companies should have a new floor given the structural changes seen in the rent industry, with Avis' floor being relatively higher.

Persons: Avis shouldn't, Morgan Stanley, Adam Jonas, Jonas, Avis, Hertz, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Avis, Hertz Locations: Friday's

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Apple, Tesla, Amazon, Delta, Rivian, Disney & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Here are Tuesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Evercore ISI reiterates Apple as outperform Evercore said it's bullish on Apple's venture into augmented and virtual reality. " Morgan Stanley upgrades U.S. Foods to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said in its upgrade of the stock that it sees "optionality." Morgan Stanley initiates Everest Re Group as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's bullish on shares of the insurer. Morgan Stanley initiates Arch Capital as overweight Morgan Stanley said the insurance company is "best positioned for secular growth opportunities." Morgan Stanley upgrades Avis Budget to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said it likes the company's profitability potential.

Persons: Evercore, it's, it's bullish, Piper Sandler, Tesla, Piper, we've, Morgan Stanley, Baidu, Read, Philip Morris, Raymond James downgrades Palantir, Raymond James, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Canaccord, Bud, Chipotle Organizations: Apple, Pro, Credit Suisse, Citi, Delta Citi, Bank of America, Inc, Foods, Everest, Arch, Avis, OW, Nvidia, Data Center, BMO, Securities, Disney, ESPN, Anheuser Busch InBev Locations: 1H23, 2Q23, China, combustibles, Hulu

☆ Microsoft paused raises and cut bonuses to 'invest in the AI wave,' exec tells employees in internal message
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

One exec explained a reason for the change is "wanting to invest in the AI wave." A Microsoft executive said a reason behind the company's decision to halt raises and cut bonuses and stock awards this year is "wanting to invest in the AI wave," an internal message viewed by Insider read. "The most important lever for almost all our employees' compensation upside is the stock price," Capossela wrote in the message. Some Microsoft employees have been vocal about the blow to morale from pay changes and recent layoffs, saying in internal messages directed at executives and viewed by Insider. That might be true if we were a private company perhaps like a private law firm, but for publicly traded companies like Microsoft, investors become a critical stakeholder.

Persons: Satya Nadella, Chris Capossela, Capossela, I've, Ashley Stewart Organizations: Microsoft, OpenAI, Activision, Companies

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, JPMorgan, PayPal, Shoals & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

JPMorgan initiates Alkami as overweight JPMorgan said the regional banking software company has strong fundamentals. " Bernstein reiterates Microsoft as outperform Bernstein said AI is going "everywhere and in everything" that Microsoft does. Goldman Sachs reiterates PayPal as buy Goldman said it sees further earnings upside after the company's earnings report on Monday. " Raymond James reiterates Palantir as strong buy Raymond James said it's standing by its strong buy rating on shares of the AI beneficiary. Credit Suisse downgrades PayPal to neutral from outperform Credit Suisse said it's too "challenging" to recommend shares right now.

Organizations: & & .

The recent selloff in Vitru shares presents an attractive entry point opportunity, according to Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley upgraded Vitru shares to overweight. Shares of the Brazil-based digital education company have plunged 44% since March, as of Friday's closing price. However, Morgan Stanley thinks the decline wasn't due to the company's fundamentals, but rather was "exacerbated" by the stock's limited liquidity. "Vitru is the best-positioned player to capture the [distance learning] opportunity," added Martinez.

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Amazon, VF Corp, Deere, Netflix, Rivian, Nvidia & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Here are Friday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Bank of America reiterates Amazon as buy Bank of America said it's standing by its buy rating on the stock. "Our Buy rating is based on: 1) positive feedback from our proprietary Sleep survey that points to healthy underlying US volumes, 2) lingering pent-up demand due to US staffing shortages." William Blair reiterates Charles Schwab as outperform William Blair said it's standing by its outperform rating on the stock heading into earnings next week. Barclays reiterates Disney as equal weight Barclays said it sees slowing streaming growth heading into Disney earnings in early May. " Stifel reiterates Microsoft as buy Stifel said it's standing by its buy rating on Microsoft heading into earnings later this month.

☆ Here are Wednesday's biggest analyst calls: Netflix, Tesla, Honeywell, Amazon, Shopify, Hyatt & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

UBS upgrades Goldman Sachs to buy from neutral UBS said in its upgrade of the banking giant that it's "resilient." "We are upgrading GS to Buy from Neutral as the firm appears well positioned to outperform amidst elevated levels of market volatility." Morgan Stanley upgrades MongoDB to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said in its upgrade of the developer data platform that it has "share gain opportunities." Morgan Stanley names Box a top pick Morgan Stanley named the cloud content management company as a top pick and says it sees more margin upside ahead. Morgan Stanley upgrades Evercore to overweight from equal weight Morgan Stanley said the investment bank has "underappreciated resiliency."

Organizations: ~$

Shopify shares have big upside potential as the company gains traction with larger enterprise businesses, according to JMP. Analyst Andrew Boone upgraded Shopify shares to market outperform from market perform. His price target of $65 per share implies 45.1% upside from Tuesday's close price. SHOP YTD mountain SHOP in 2023 To be sure, the analyst said Shopify, as well as other website builders, can engage in greater expense discipline. "In 2023, we expect R & D to represent ~19% of Shopify's revenue, up from ~16% in 2019.

☆ Apple reportedly delaying some employee bonuses as the company cuts costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kif Leswing | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple is delaying bonuses for some of its employees, according to a new report in Bloomberg. Apple is also more closely watching travel budgets and leaving some unfilled positions open, according to the report. We're cutting hiring. And so a number of areas in the company are not hiring at all," Cook told CNBC in February. Last month, Apple announced December quarter earnings which were about 5% lower than they were in 2021, its first year-over-year revenue decline since 2019.

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Tesla, Alphabet, Kroger, Meta, Silvergate, UPS & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Here are Friday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Morgan Stanley reiterates Apple as a top pick Morgan Stanley said it sees a "catalyst rich event path" for the tech giant. Morgan Stanley names Alphabet, Amazon and Meta top AI picks Morgan Stanley named Alphabet, Amazon and Alphabet as top picks and said AI is at an inflection point. Barclays reiterates Alphabet as overweight Barclays said it's standing by its overweight rating on the stock but sees it range-bound for the foreseeable future. Morgan Stanley reiterates Eaton as a top pick Morgan Stanley said it sees several cyclical growth drivers for the multination power management company. Morgan Stanley names Eli Lilly as a catalyst driven idea Morgan Stanley named Eli Lilly as a catalyst driven idea, saying that the stock "levered" to a likely positive outcome from upcoming obesity drug trials.

☆ JPMorgan says electric flying vehicles will be a $1 trillion market and it has a new favorite way to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

There's a $1 trillion market opportunity for electric flying vehicles, and one player in particular — Eve — is positioned to take flight, according to JPMorgan. The company, which designs and produces electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles (eVTOLs), has superior expertise since it was founded by Brazil-based jets manufacturer Embraer , analyst Marcelo Motta said in a note Wednesday. In September, United announced it agreed to buy 200 electric air taxis from the company and has options to purchase 200 more. Its total addressable market for passenger transportation could potentially reach $1 trillion by 2040 and would jump to $3 trillion when including cargo and military operations. That potential size exceeds the helicopter market of $35 billion a year and would have lower noise emission, lower operational costs and safety benefits, Motta said.

☆ There's 'nothing thesis-changing' about Coinbase despite fourth-quarter beat, some Wall Street firms say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The outlook for Coinbase changed little even after it beat analyst expectations in the latest quarter, some Wall Street firms say. Coinbase reported a loss of $2.46 per share on revenue of $629 million. Meanwhile, the firm's user base fell to 8.3 million monthly transacting users (MTUs) in the fourth quarter, down from 8.5 million in the previous quarter and the 8.22 million Street estimate compiled by StreetAccount. Bank of America's Jason Kupferberg was underwhelmed by the results, saying that there was "nothing thesis-changing in the print" despite the solid results. EBITDA beat was helped by lower opex.

☆ Here are Wednesday's biggest analyst calls: Tesla, Apple, Coinbase, Shopify, Pinterest, Nvidia & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

"We are upgrading shares of Shopify to BUY from Neutral, as we believe the > 20% selloff post earnings has created an attractive entry point." Morgan Stanley reiterates Home Depot and Walmart as overweight Morgan Stanley said it's standing by its overweight ratings on shares of Home Depot and Walmart after the company's reported earnings on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley also trimmed its price target on Walmart to $160 per share from $161. Morgan Stanley reiterates Apple as overweight Morgan Stanley said the tech giant remains underowned among large-cap institutional investors. Morgan Stanley reiterates Salesforce as overweight Morgan Stanley said expectations are "low" and "mixed" ahead of the company's earnings report.

☆ Here are Monday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Tesla, Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, Disney, Uber & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Wells Fargo upgrades Spotify to overweight from equal weight Wells said the stock is coming off of "margin probation." Bernstein upgrades Diageo to outperform from market perform Bernstein said shares of the spirits company are compelling at current levels. " Wells Fargo reiterates Tesla as equal weight Wells said the industry dynamic surrounding EV pricing remains "challenged." Raymond James downgrades PayPal to market perform from outperform Raymond James said in its downgrade of PayPal that market share losses are growing. Cowen initiates Dick's as outperform Cowen said its survey checks show that Dick's continues to gain market share.

☆ Wells Fargo upgrades Spotify, says stock can rally nearly 50% as margins expand
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Hakyung Kim | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

It's time to jump back into the Spotify bandwagon, according to Wells Fargo. Analyst Steven Cahall upgraded the audio streaming stock to to overweight from equal weight, saying the company is now "off margin probation." An expected price hike could also further improve gross margins for Spotify's Music division, according to Cahall. Additionally, Spotify received an upgrade to overweight by Atlantic Equities, which is optimistic about the company's gross margin expansion and advertising outlook. The stock has jumped 53.4% in 2023, as part of the tech stock rally .

☆ Apple's long-term positives outweigh rare earnings miss, Morgan Stanley says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shorter-term macro issues don't detract from the long-term value at Apple , Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in a Friday morning note that reiterated an overweight rating and a $175 price target. "Taking a step back, it's rare to see Apple miss and guide down in a quarter, but we believe the long-term positives from tonight's report outweigh the short-term negatives," Morgan Stanley's Erik Woodring wrote. It's that same discipline that helps Morgan Stanley analysts maintain a bullish outlook on Apple, which guided to a Mar. Apple's user spend levels are also keeping Morgan Stanley bullish, proof that "the underlying drivers of Apple's model remain robust." Investors have apparently embraced Morgan Stanley's appraisal of Apple's durability as a long-term investment.

☆ Apple telegraphed that things are getting better after a tough quarter — here's how to interpret its remarks
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Kif Leswing | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"For iPhone, we expect our March quarter year-over-year revenue performance to accelerate relative to the December quarter year-over-year revenue performance," Maestri said. Before Thursday, analysts had expected Apple to guide to about $98 billion in sales in the company's fiscal second quarter. Last year, in the March quarter, Apple reported $97.28 billion in sales. In other words, December 2022's year-over-year revenue performance was even worse than it looked. Mac sales will be down at least 10% in the March quarter, based on these comments, but will likely improve.

☆ BMO says this stock taking gene therapy to the 'next level' can more than double
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of 4D Molecular Therapeutics could more than double as the biotechnology company revolutionizes gene therapy treatment, according to BMO Capital Markets. Analyst Kostas Biliouris initiated coverage of the stock with an outperform rating, saying in a Monday note to clients that 4DMT's utilization of a protein engineering method known as directed evolution can help take "gene therapy to the next level." "4DMT has built a powerful gene therapy platform that has been validated in clinic and is generating transformative therapies leading to potential multibillion dollar commercial opportunities," he said. "4DMT's gene therapy for wet AMD addresses the above key challenges, while its early clinical data point to a potential best-in-class profile that can drive > $5B in (risk-unadjusted) peak sales," Biliouris wrote. With a solid cash runway and just 140 employees working on five gene therapy programs, 4DMT's operating efficiencies differentiate it from competitors, he added.

☆ Bank of America reveals its top stocks ahead of earnings, including a favorite solar name
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

There still are plenty of stock-buying opportunities as earnings reports continue to roll out, according to Bank of America analysts. CNBC Pro combed through Bank of America's recent research to find the most attractive stocks that are well-positoned ahead of their reports. Fox Buy shares of the "best positioned" company in media, analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said recently about Fox . "We find Grab well positioned to balance revenue growth with profitability in both its core businesses— delivery & mobility," Salgaonkar said. Thesis: 1) We find Grab well positioned to balance revenue growth with profitability in both its core businesses - delivery & mobility.

☆ Latest Microsoft results show the tech giant is still a buy despite near-term pressures, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Microsoft may be facing some near-term pressures, but most analysts think the stock remains a buy at current levels. Radke has a buy rating on the stock, and raised his target price slightly to $282 from $280. His $300 price target represents more than 23% upside from Tuesday's closing price for the stock. Davidson's Gil Luria was especially bullish on Microsoft, saying that the tech giant "deserves a premium valuation relative to the market and its Pac4 comparables." He lowered his price target to $265 from $267.

☆ Here are Thursday's biggest analyst calls: Meta, Apple, Tesla, Netflix, Roku, Disney, Exxon & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Here are the Thursday's biggest calls Wall Street: Credit Suisse upgrades AECOM to outperform from neutral Credit Suisse said the company is a key beneficiary of infrastructure stimulus. UBS reiterates Apple as buy UBS said it's sticking with its buy rating on the stock but is concerned about App Store revenue declines. Credit Suisse upgrades Boeing to neutral from underperform Credit Suisse said in its upgrade of Boeing that it sees "stronger aircraft deliveries." RBC names Meta a top 2023 pick RBC said it sees "multiple expansion" on the horizon for Meta shares. " Rosenblatt reiterates Disney as buy Rosenblatt said activist investor Nelson Peltz's push for a Disney board seat could help shares.

Organizations: ~$

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