Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) has had a good year and at $80.01 it has a market cap of about $15 billion and a 52-week range of $41.62 to $88.49. This week we saw an analyst duel occur. The stock was downgraded to “Underweight” at JPMorgan, but the target price was raised to $65 from $53 in the call. It was also raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day on Monday by Zacks based upon more excitement around virtualizat
ion, cloud, and unified communications.
JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) had a rough week after CIENA Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN) had an earnings disappointment. As telecoms and major communication providers continue to consolidate, it creates an environment for what would be called “Good Hits & Bad Misses” when it comes to earnings. On Friday came a downgrade to Underperform from Zacks based upon a building inventory glut. Shares closed down almost 3% on Friday at $16.86 and its 52-week range is now $9.05 to $29.12.
MakeMyTrip Limited (NASDAQ: MMYT) is the former high-flying IPO out of India based around online travel services. Shares are trading at $22.14, down almost half from its 2010 peak of $42.88 and only a few percentage points above the post-IPO low of $20.75. We saw two calls this week that may make this one attractive. Deutsche Bank started coverage with a “Buy” rating and a $28 price target. Oppenheimer was even more bullish after raising it to “Outperform” with a price target objective of $32.00. The market was weak enough that this had little impact on the price but it leaves much upside.
RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) hit yet a new 52-week low on Friday of $12.51 and closed at $12.66. Its shares are now down almost half from the 52-week high of $23.38. THE SHACK was started in coverage at Barclays with an “Underweight” rating in what was a neutral retail segment broader call. This company just cannot win for losing.
Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) is another stock that just cannot get any real traction. This last Tuesday came a downgrade by Stifel Nicolaus to “Sell” from an already-cautious “Hold” rating and the firm assigned a price target of $4.50 on the beaten stock. Shares only fell about 2% on the downgrade to $5.49 on Tuesday, but the stock slid the rest of the week and closed down at $5.22 versus a 52-week range of $3.70 to $6.45. Boy, isn’t that inspiring?
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) is a very unusual call for us to cover but this call stood out massively. Late Friday afternoon, when very few investors are in during summer, came word that Standard & Poor’s raised its corporate credit rating to “BB+” from “BB.” It also said it still has a “Positive” rating outlook which implies that another credit rating upgrade could come in the coming months. It is often that credit ratings matter less, but Wynn is now just one-notch shy of being considered “Investment Grade” for its bond and corporate credit ratings. The basis is the strength of cash flow in Las Vegas and around its timeline, budget, and funding plan for its planned Cotai, Macau resort. Casinos rely heavily on borrowings and Wynn has been trying to gradually pay down its debt. This will only make its borrowing costs lower and give Wynn cheaper access to capital for refinances ahead. At $131.99, its 52-week range is $73.12 to $151.73. That is very impressive if it can get rid of its “junk bond” ratings status even if it does trade at about 28-times a blended 2011-2012 earnings projection.
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JON C. OGG
