Investing

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Akamai, Avaya, Canopy Growth, Corsair Gaming, Playtika, Virgin Galactic and More

Lee Jackson

Published: February 10, 2021 8:57 am

Last Updated: December 3, 2021 11:38 am

The futures traded higher on Wednesday after investors watched once again as all three of the major indexes and the Russell 2000 printed a fresh round of intraday all-time highs, with two closing yesterday at all-time highs. Investors are cheering the possibility that a big stimulus package becoming a reality and fourth-quarter earnings that have continued to come in very strong. Top analysts on Wall Street continue to point to “bubble” metrics, like the massive retail stock and options trading, huge hedge fund leverage and IPOs that don’t make money as examples, and many are urging caution.

With fourth-quarter earnings results still coming in, most across Wall Street are not only examining the results but looking to see what guidance for the first quarter and the rest of 2021 looks like. With the markets pushing back to all-time highs last week, it makes sense for investors to start building some cash reserves while repositioning portfolios for the rest of 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Wednesday, February 10, 2021.

Akamai Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan, which lowered the price target $117. That compares with the higher $127 consensus target and Tuesday’s closing print of $117.97. Shares were down over 7% in premarket trading despite an earnings beat.

Avaya Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: AVYA) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Northland Capital, which raised the price target to $30. The consensus target is $24.89. The stock was last seen on Tuesday trading at $29.17, up almost 13% after posting strong earnings.

ALX Oncology Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ALXO) was started with a Buy rating and a $100 price target at H.C. Wainwright. The consensus target $91.40. The shares closed Tuesday at $82.18, down almost 3% on the day.

Canopy Growth Corp. (NASDAQ: CGC) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Canaccord Genuity. The 52-week trading range for the marijuana company is $9.00 to $50.92, and no consensus price target was available. The last trade on Tuesday hit the tape at $49.09, up 12% for the day. The shares followed through in the premarket, up an additional 7% as the entire sector is on fire.

Catalyst Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: CBIO) was started with an Overweight rating and a $15 price target at Piper Sandler. The higher consensus target is $19.75, and Tuesday’s final trade came in at $6.62, which was up almost 13% on the day. The shares were up an additional 7% in the premarket.

Chuy’s Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CHUY) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $7.28 to $43.35 and has a $33.63 consensus target price. The last trade for Tuesday was at $40.49, after retreating almost 5% on the day.

Corsair Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: CRSR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs, though it raised the price target to $44. The $42.22 consensus target is less than Tuesday’s close at $44.70. Shares pulled back almost 3% despite the gaming products company posting solid numbers that beat expectations and raising guidance.

Corvus Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: CRVS) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho, which lowered the price target to $4. That compares with the $9.20 consensus target and Tuesday’s $4.77 close, which was up almost 12% on the day. The stock was down just over 3% in premarket trading.

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Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN) was raised from Neutral to Overweight with a $50 price target at Piper Sandler. The consensus target is $42.83, and Tuesday’s closing price was $42.34. The shares were up almost 3% in the premarket after a solid earnings report.

Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG) was downgraded from Strong Buy to Outperform with a $48 price target at Raymond James. The consensus target price is $46.75. The last trade on Tuesday was reported at $43.03.

Lithia Motors Inc. (NYSE: LAD) was downgraded at Morgan Stanley from Equal Weight to Underweight with a $310 price target. That compares with a much higher consensus target of $368.40 and Tuesday’s closing price of $390.85.

Masco Corp. (NYSE: MAS) was downgraded from Buy to Hold with a $61 price objective at Loop Capital. The consensus target is $65.87, and Tuesday’s closing price was $56.29 a share.

Mesa Air Group Inc. (NASDAQ: MESA) was raised at Deutsche Bank from Hold to Buy with a $10 price target. The consensus target for the regional carrier is $7.00, and the shares were last seen Tuesday at $7.44.

Model N Inc. (NASDAQ: MODL) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan, which raised the price target to $40. BTIG Research upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral with a $60 price target. The consensus target is $41.63. The closed at $40.73 on Tuesday. The shares were up a whopping 15% in premarket action on the heels of a strong earnings report.

Open Lending Corp. (NASDAQ: LPRO) was started with a Buy rating and a $50 target at Needham. The consensus target is $41.60, and the last trade for Tuesday came in at $40.74.

Playtika Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: PLTK) was started at Wedbush with an Outperform rating and a $42 target. Cowen also initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $42 price target. No consensus target was available as this was a recent very hot initial public offering. The stock rose over 6% on Tuesday to close at $34.28.

Qualys Inc. (NASDAQ: QLYS) was downgraded at Morgan Stanley from Equal Weight to Underweight with a $110 price target. The consensus target is $113.50, and shares close most recently at $129.78.

Skyworks Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: SWKS) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this company’s cutting-edge chip technology is critical for the ushering out of 5G devices, and this past quarterly report really illustrated the vitality of this enterprise. Shares most recently closed at $182.91 and have a consensus price target of $198.96.

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPCE) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS, which raised the target price to $52. The consensus target is $30.67. The stock closed on Tuesday at $56.72.

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Jefferies favors three stocks in what it calls the digital gaming matrix. They are Buy rated at the firm and all make sense for aggressive growth investors looking to invest in this massive and fast-growing digital gaming and fantasy sports arena.

Note that short sellers bought into FAANG stocks Facebook, Amazon and Alphabet in the most recent period.

Tuesday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Bilibili, Constellation Brands, FedEx, Harley-Davidson, Matador Resources, Twilio and Yandex. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Baidu, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Dollar General, Ford and more.