Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
GROWTH MOMENTUM: China Renaissance analyst Ella Ji upgraded Alphabet (GOOGL) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $3,000, up from $1,477. Ji is more bullish on the growth momentum and long-term growth outlook for the company's advertising business, and in the long-term growth trajectory of YouTube ads in particular, following Alphabet's first quarter results. The shift to digital in both user time spent and business transactions should be more durable in a post-pandemic world, benefiting the company's YouTube, Search and Maps products, said Ji, who also called Google Cloud "a solid player amidst the global business digitalization trend."
TIGHTER NEW AUTO SUPPLY: Bank of America analyst Nat Schindler upgraded Carvana (CVNA) to Buy from Neutral with a $350 price target ahead of the company's upcoming first quarter report. The firm's Autos research team recently raised U.S. sales forecasts while lowering North American production forecasts due to semiconductor shortages and other supply chain disruptions. Tighter new auto supply supports used car sales and "shifts competitive emphasis in 2021 to inventory levels," said Schindler, who sees robust demand meeting a solid inventory rebound for Carvana.
STATE LEGALIZATION 'ROBUST' PATH: Cowen analyst Stephen Glagola upgraded DraftKings (DKNG) to Outperform from Market Perform with an unchanged price target of $70. The primary driver for the shares remains the pace of state legalization and that path is "robust" for the second half of 2021 and 2022, Glagola told investors in a research note. The analyst has greater confidence that DraftKings will sustain over 25% online sports betting market share in the U.S. at maturity. The recent pullback in the shares provides a "more compelling risk/reward," he added. Further, the analyst believes that while investors have viewed the New York online sports betting plan unfavorably, the "low-skin and potentially high tax model" will drive increasing barriers to entry, resulting in greater market concentration for the winners like DraftKings.
POST-EARNINGS PULLBACK: Bank of America analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith upgraded First Solar (FSLR) to Buy from Neutral with an unchanged price target of $91 after the stock tumbled by 8.9% on Friday, following what he calls a "positive" first quarter earnings update. Dumoulin-Smith blames the stock's move lower to investor concerns around shipping costs and the longer-term confirmation of a ramp in R&D cycle amidst higher expectations. However, he called the medium-term update "one of the best" he has seen of late in terms of panel pricing outlook, which should sizably offset both near-term 2021 pressures and provide a long-term bridge to next generation panel technology.
'DEAD MONEY AT BEST': Wells Fargo analyst Chris Carey double downgraded Clorox (CLX) to Underweight from Overweight with a price target of $170, down from $240, following last week's fiscal third quarter results. Clorox offers "dead money at best, with downside," Carey told investors in a research note. The quarter fell short on sales and the company's pricing plans are "muted," which means estimates "need a significant reset," the analyst added. He believes a potentially disappointing fiscal 2022 outlook that is well below Street expectations may be "on the horizon."
