As the COVID-19 vaccinations continue to roll out and the White-House-backed huge pandemic relief bill inches its way through Congress, many investors and analysts are looking to position themselves for a reopening and recovery of the U.S. economy.
Raymond James recently issued its most recent list of Analyst Current Favorites stock picks, and a number of the recommendations play right into the reopening theme. They include Alaska Air, Dave & Buster’s Entertainment and Diamondback Energy, all in sectors that struggled through the past year.
Oppenheimer also has added Papa John’s International to its top picks list for similar reasons. That is, the firm likes its prospects post pandemic.
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. Many of the calls seen in the past week play right into this reopening and recovery theme. Here are seven of them.
Airbnb
On Monday, Loop Capital upgraded Airbnb Inc. (NASDAQ: ABNB) from Hold to Buy with a $240 price target. Then on Friday, after the travel marketplace operator posted mixed quarterly results, Canaccord Genuity reiterated its Buy rating and raised its $175 price target to a street-high $270.The consensus target price was last seen at $163.56 per share.
The stock popped about 5% in the past week, though it is still shy of its post-IPO high of $219.94. Shares have traded as low as $121.50 since coming public back in December, and the share price is up more than 40% since the beginning of the year.
American Airlines
Also on Monday, Deutsche Bank upgraded American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL), along with several of its peers. The firm raised American from Hold to Buy with a $23 price target. Stifel raised its target to $20 this week too. The consensus target for the carrier is a much lower $12.59. Half of the 18 analysts surveyed recommend buying shares
The stock has pulled back a bit from the recent year-to-date high of $22.80 per share, but it is still well up from the 52-week low of $8.25 seen last May. The share price is almost 33% higher year to date, while the S&P500 has seen less than a 2% gain in that time.
American Eagle Outfitters
Cowen’s upgrade of mall-based retailer American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) came on Wednesday. The firm lifted its Market Perform rating to Outperform with a street-high $31 price target. RBC upgraded the shares to Outperform with a $30 price objective late last month. The posted consensus target is $27.31. Note that the analysts’ consensus buy recommendation is a weak one.
The company is due to post fiscal fourth-quarter report this week, and results are forecast to be a little weaker than a year ago. Shares saw a 52-week high of $27.10 this past week, which is well up from the $6.54 52-week low. The stock is about 28% higher since the start of the year.
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