Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
MOVING TO SIDELINES IN CABLE: TD Securities analyst Vince Valentini downgraded Comcast (CMCSA) to Hold from Buy with an unchanged price target of $54. The stock is up 18% since the third quarter earnings report, expanding cable valuations to new highs, Valentini told investors in a research note. The analyst still likes the fundamentals for Comcast's U.S. cable assets but is "turning more cautious" as he looks forward. Some of the tailwinds for the industry are not permanent, and Comcast has a "much wider asset mix" outside of U.S. cable, where the outlook remains uncertain, Valentini contended. He believes Comcast shares are fairly valued at these levels. TD Securities analyst Bentley Cross downgraded Altice USA (ATUS) to Hold from Buy, noting that this change mirrors the similar downgrade for cable peer Comcast.
GAP RISK/REWARD SEEN AS MORE BALANCED: Citi analyst Paul Lejuez downgraded Gap (GPS) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $27, down from $30. The analyst argued that following the stock rally over the past several months, there were "several things" on the third quarter earnings call that make him less bullish on the 12-month story for the shares. In an environment where many specialty apparel retailers are seeing significantly higher product margins driven by well-controlled inventories, product margins at Gap have not been as strong, Lejuez told investors in a research note. Further, the analyst pointed out that Gap is investing more heavily in marketing at a time it is shrinking its store base. With the stock up 73% over the past three months, he believes the risk/reward is more balanced at current levels.
FORD EV STRATEGY "NOT FULLY CLEAR": Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas downgraded Ford (F) to Equal Weight from Overweight with an unchanged price target of $9. General Motors' (GM) recent moves show its "all in" on electric vehicles, or EVs, and while Jonas thinks Ford has "the sense of urgency on EVs," its strategy is still not fully clear to him. The analyst believes Ford can ultimately transition to EVs, but sees it facing substantial headwinds on its high-margin internal combustion engine products.
BUY FISKER: Citi analyst Itay Michaeli initiated coverage of Fisker (FSR) with a Buy rating and $26 price target. The analyst noted that Fisker is an "asset-light premium" electric vehicle platform set to launch its first vehicle, the Fisker Ocean, in the fourth quarter of 2022. Michaeli believes the company is targeting the right segment of the market, SUVs, and sees "significant upside potential" in Fisker's future entry into flex-leases. This could substantially expand the total addressable market from today's largely one-time transactional business to lifetime vehicle revenue, he added.
NEAR-TERM LOCKDOWN RISKS SEEN WEIGHING ON CAESARS: Morgan Stanley analyst Thomas Allen downgraded Caesars (CZR) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $67, down from $68. While he sees Caesars with attractive long-term opportunities in sports betting and online gambling, he expects near-term earnings risk from rising COVID-related restrictions. The states of Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico and Rhode Island have closed casinos in the past few weeks, while Connecticut, Iowa, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, and Ohio have recently increased restrictions, Allen noted.
Comcast
-0.85 (-1.62%)
Comcast
+ (+0.00%)
Gap
-4.64 (-17.26%)
Ford
-0.265 (-2.81%)
General Motors
-0.835 (-1.80%)
Fisker
+2.055 (+12.89%)
Caesars
-2.64 (-3.77%)
Altice USA
-0.295 (-0.85%)