Friday Wrap-up

Truist Securities analyst Joseph Civello punished lululemon athletica for last night’s earnings miss with a downgrade to hold this morning, and a much lower price target of $170.

“2Q missed already-depressed investor expectations, and [lulu] materially lowered the FY outlook. In addition to weaker sales, the guide now embeds the full brunt of reciprocal tariffs, the removal of the de minimis exemption, and more markdown pressure.” The analyst sees a fair value for lulu stock at about 11.5x earnings.

On the plus side, lulu’s stock losses have moderated a bit, down “only” about 18% now. The Voo, on the other hand, has given up all its gains and is now down 0.6%.

Freedom Broker analyst Vitaly Kononov upgraded steelmaker and S&P 500 component company Nucor (NYSE: NUE) to “buy” with a $174 price target this morning.

“The U.S. steel market, supported by tariffs and infrastructure spending. China’s 2-5% steel output cuts in 2025, reducing global supply, bolster HRC prices ($800-$850/ton), benefiting Nucor’s EAF model,” says the analyst. “Coking coal prices, stable at $205/ MT, support cost predictability, though long-term green steel transitions (EAF/DRI) reduce reliance on coke. Improving pricing, healthy non-residential backlogs, and visible ramp-ups across new capacity (plate, towers/structures) position Nucor for sequential earnings recovery into late-2025/early-2026.”

Nucor stock is up 2.2% in response.

Janitorial, parking, and facilities services company ABM Industries (NYSE: ABM) missed earnings by an unlucky thirteen cents this morning. Q3 earnings were only $0.82 per share, despite revenues coming in $70 million stronger than expected at $2.2 billion.

ABM stock is down 6.5% — but the Voo is still up 0.3%.