Investing.com — Here’s a Pro Recap of Wall Street analysts’ top opinions over the past week.
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JD.com
What has happened? On Monday, Loop Capital upgraded JD.com (NASDAQ:) to Buy with a $48 price target.
*TLDR: Loop Capital expects revenue growth of 4% in Q3, driven by trade-in rebates and prudent management. The outlook for 2025 is conservative; price target reduced to $48 due to higher expenses and no increase in revenue.
What’s the complete story? Loop Cap believes the Q3 forecast is achievable, with expectations of higher spending in the fourth quarter. The broker took comfort in accelerating revenue growth of 4% in Q3, driven by a strong September, where government-sponsored trade-in rebates boosted sales of home appliances and consumer electronics. They anticipate better earnings results in the third quarter, saying management has been cautious during the downturn in consumer spending. A parallel Q3 means net margin for the year has increased from 2.0% to 3.6% over the past two years. With potential stimulus-driven changes in consumption spending, Loop expects management to return to growth investments in Q4 and 2025.
In their forecast for 2025, the broker takes a conservative stance. While raising their spending estimates, they are waiting for details of the fiscal stimulus before adjusting their headline estimates. Loop assumes increased expenses without additional revenue, which lowers GAAP EPS estimates by $0.18 and reduces the price target from $49 to $48.
Buy in the Loop means “The stock is expected to trade higher in absolute terms or perform better than the market or its peers over the next 12 months.”
Outdoor Decker
What has happened? On Tuesday, BTIG downgraded Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NYSE:) to neutral with no price target.
*TLDR: BTIG sees balanced risk/reward; UGG’s holiday season is slow, profits from wholesale, not DTC. HOKA growth is moderate; shares are trading 30% above their five-year average, vulnerable to slowing growth.
What’s the complete story? BTIG now views the risk/reward profile as more balanced based on recent inspections. The company noted a slower start to the holiday season for UGG, with upside potential possibly coming more from the wholesale channel than the direct-to-consumer (DTC) channel, which investors may not appreciate at current valuation levels. Additionally, there are signs that HOKA’s growth is slowing after multi-year strong growth, as competitors begin to catch up.
Even though shares are pulling back from their highs, they continue to trade at a multiple of about 30% above their five-year average. This makes the stock vulnerable to moderate growth and even a minor disappointment relative to expectations.
Neutral in BTIG means “Securities that are not expected to appreciate or depreciate significantly over the next 12 months.”
Broken
What has happened? On Wednesday, JMP Securities made an upgrade Snap Inc (NYSE:) to Outperform Market with a price target of $17.
*TLDR: JMP expects Snap’s new ad products to increase engagement and ad load in North America. The new price target for Snap is $17, justified by product catalysts and higher advertising loads.
What’s the complete story? JMP Securities anticipates a significant increase in impression growth for Snap with the launch of Simple Snapchat and the launch of Sponsored Snaps. Analysts believe the new ad products will increase US and North American engagement and drive higher ad loads. Feedback from higher-performing advertisers was positive, indicating that Snap’s improved direct response product is gaining traction. Despite uncertainty regarding launch timing and initial user reaction, JMP analysts are optimistic about Snap’s product-driven growth initiatives and consider its valuation attractive at 15.5x EBITDA 2026E.
JMP has set a new price target of $17 for Snap, based on 25.0x 2026E EBITDA. According to JMP analysts, the award against this peer group is warranted due to Snap’s product catalyst in redesign and increased advertising load.
Market Outperform at JMP Securities means “…expected stock prices to outperform the Russell 3000® Index over the next 12 months”
Verizon
What has happened? On Thursday, Keybanc lowered its rating Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:) to Sector Weights
*TLDR: Keybanc downgraded Verizon due to limited EBITDA growth and declining free cash flow in 2025. Verizon’s potential acquisition of Frontier and higher device subsidies were seen as poor capital allocation.
What’s the complete story? Keybanc analysts have downgraded Verizon for several factors, although most of their previous views remain intact. The downgrade is primarily due to limited room for EBITDA acceleration in 2025, estimated at 1.5% versus 2.2% in 2024, and a possible decline in free cash flow growth, projected at $17.5 billion in 2025 versus $20.2 billion by 2024. Additionally, Verizon’s potential acquisition of Frontier Communications (OTC:) is seen as a poor capital allocation decision, limiting the possibility of share repurchases.
Furthermore, Keybanc analysts highlighted the slowing increase in additions to Verizon Consumer Group’s (VCG) postpaid phone network, coupled with higher device subsidies, which means spending more money for the same growth. Analysts will look for a pullback in valuation or a rise in expectations for the stock to be more constructive.
Sector Weighting in Keybanc means “We expect the stock to perform in line with analysts’ sector coverage over the next 6-12 months.”
Denny’s
What has happened? On Friday, Citi upgraded Denny’s (NASDAQ:) to Buy with a price target of $7.50.
*TLDR: Denny’s store closures and cost discipline to increase profitability; flat unit growth from 2026. Citi sees favorable risk benefits; shares traded at 6.1x CY25E EBITDA with an FCF yield of 9%.
What’s the complete story? Citi analysts have provided three important pieces of information that investors have been waiting for. First, Denny’s accelerated store closures are expected to build a stronger base, potentially leading to flat unit growth from 2026 onward. Second, the company is showing greater cost discipline, with plans to reduce core G&A spending by 5-6% over the next few years, alongside technology improvements that are expected to improve profitability at the store level. Finally, there is now a clearer look at KeKe’s growth plans, including comparable sales and new store openings.
While Citi analysts acknowledge the challenges facing the category and brand, they see credibility in initiatives such as overhauls, ongoing customer experience and brand work, retuning of value offerings, and more relevant marketing messages. With shares trading at 6.1x Citi’s CY25E EBITDA (9% FCF yield), it appears investors are not fully realizing its positive potential, making the risk-reward profile more favorable.
Buy on Citi means “Buy (1) ETR for 15% or more or 25% or more for high risk stocks.”