Stocks rallied again on Thursday, with the S&P adding 1% while the Nasdaq soared over 2.5%. Asia stocks were mostly lower overnight while Europe stocks are mixed this morning. U.S. futures are pointing to a lower open, the Dollar and Yields are higher while Oil and Gold are lower.
TRIP rallied yesterday, testing $56 during the lunch time hour before pulling back to close at $55.31. I used the pop to lock some of my calls in for over 100% to cover costs. Josh Brown pumped the name on CNBC calling it the NFLX of travel. Maybe he reads the morning watchlist?
This morning It received a price target upgrade from Truist:
Truist analyst Naved Khan raised the firm's price target on TripAdvisor to $62 from $48 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The analyst is citing the updated assumption of a "modest uptake" for the newly launched TripAdvisor Plus, and with growing participation from hotel partners, TA+ should see "increased customer appeal", Khan tells investors in a research note. The analyst adds that the profitability contribution from TA+ should be limited this year but get bigger in 2022 and beyond
Would think this is on a collision course with $60 next week pending any market craziness. Will look to hold calls into the weekend but will use the $53.50 area as s spot I may look to lock my profits in and revisit:
Monthly:
OLED gapped higher at the open and continued to find buyers into the the afternoon, testing $223 before closing at $221.91. I was able to close the last of my $215 calls for 1400%+. I was looking to add some later dated strikes but will likely wait to see it hold the $220 handle first:
NTR is coming out of a nice tight bollie setup. Still holding my freebie March 60s and and may add some later dated strikers if it holds $58 today. This is headed to $65 in the coming weeks:
Still eyeing ANET, AXNX, LOCO, REGN, ILMN, OLED, VRTX, and CMG as well today.
Here are the analyst change of note for today:
| Ulta Beauty price target raised to $361 from $310 at DA Davidson | |
| DA Davidson analyst Michael Baker raised the firm's price target on Ulta Beauty to $361 from $310 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The company saw a "surprising" Q4 earnings beat as sales recovered from Q3 levels, the analyst tells investors in a research note, adding that comps were expected to have deteriorated due to increased stay-at-home measures. Baker adds that Ulta's 2021 guidance is also likely to be on the "conservative" side, with makeup category showing some "green shoots | |
| Ballard Power price target lowered to $35 from $38 at BMO Capital | |
| BMO Capital analyst Jonathan Lamers lowered the firm's price target on Ballard Power to $35 from $38 but keeps an Outperform rating on the shares. The company's Q4 results were below expectations, though the management has indicated that its sales pipeline has grown 55% from last year, reflecting increased market interest, the analyst tells investors in a research note. China is also expected to announce demonstration regions for fuel cell vehicles soon, driving stronger revenue for Ballard, Lamers adds | |
| GP Strategies price target raised to $20 from $17.25 at B. Riley Securities | |
| B. Riley Securities analyst Zach Cummins raised the firm's price target on GP Strategies to $20 from $17.25 and reiterates a Buy rating on the shares post the Q4 results. While COVID-19 presented a meaningful headwind to sales, both revenue and adjusted EBITDA increased on a sequential basis, with the adjusted EBITDA coming in well above expectations on revenue that was just shy of the consensus estimate, Cummins tells investors in a research note. The analyst believes GPX continued to execute upon its initiatives to strengthen the balance sheet and lower expenses. He views the company as an attractive economic recovery play given the expected return to organic growth and continued margin improvement in fiscal 2021 | |
| Luna Innovations price target raised to $14.50 from $12.50 at B. Riley | |
| B. Riley Securities analyst Dave Kang raised the firm's price target on Luna Innovations to $14.50 from $12.50 and reiterates a Buy rating on the shares. Luna reported another quarter of strong results in a challenging environment, "making a strong case for the most consistent management team in our optical coverage," Kang tells investors in a research note | |
| At Home Group price target raised to $33 from $28 at Monness Crespi | |
| Monness Crespi analyst Jim Chartier raised the firm's price target on At Home Group to $33 from $28 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares ahead of the company's report of Q4 results on Tuesday, March 23. He thinks January was a strong month and expects upside to the company's pre-announced comp sales guidance and consensus EPS forecasts, Chartier tells investors in his earnings preview note | |
| Domo price target raised to $89 from $80 at JMP Securities | |
| JMP Securities analyst Patrick Walravens raised the firm's price target on Domo (DOMO) to $89 from $80 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares. The company reported a "strong" Q4 as billings accelerated for the 3rd consecutive quarter thanks to improved sales leadership and increasing upsells from applications built on the platform, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Walravens adds that Domo may also be attracting some strategic interest from larger vendors, with potential suitors including Oracle (ORCL), IBM (IBM), or SAP (SAP) | |
| Novavax price target raised to $317 from $207 at H.C. Wainwright | |
| H.C. Wainwright analyst Vernon Bernardino raised the firm's price target on Novavax to $317 from $207 and reiterates a Buy rating on the shares. The stock in premarket trading is up 17%, or $31.12, to $218.75. Novavax last night announced final efficacy for NVXCoV2373, the company's protein-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate, of 96.4% against mild, moderate and severe disease caused by the original COVID-19 strain in a pivotal Phase 3 trial in the U.K., Mamtani tells investors in a research note. The analyst says that with results pointing to NVX-CoV2373's "real-world high level of efficacy" against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants that could be resistant to currently authorized vaccines, he's confident in NVX-CoV2373 demonstrating high vaccine efficacy in the ongoing Phase 3 trial in the U.S. and Mexico and its possible Emergency Use Authorization in Q2. Further, Bernardino says that with Novavax's "ability to rapidly adapt its nanoparticle vaccine technology to emerging strains of virus, as was demonstrated with its NanoFlu seasonal influenza vaccine's high immunogenicity against drifted strains of influenza virus," he likes the company's prospects for a future role in COVID-19. The company's "established and growing global vaccine supply and distribution agreements are second to none," says the analyst | |
| Ulta Beauty price target raised to $310 from $265 at BMO Capital | |
| BMO Capital analyst Simeon Siegel raised the firm's price target on Ulta Beauty to $310 from $265 but keeps a Market Perform rating on the shares. The company's "material" Q4 earnings and revenue beat was "overshadowed" by the announced departure of CEO Mary Dillon, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Siegel adds that Ulta has had a good run going into the print, so the sell-off on the news seems "relative", and he sees the company with more earnings beats ahead given the lower bar set for the new CEO | |
| Apple's recent pullback as a buying opportunity, says Morgan Stanley | |
| Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said she views recent iPhone supply chain data points as "noise rather than an indicator of demand" and she sees the recent pullback in Apple shares as a buying opportunity. Following a recent report from the Nikkei that claimed "the US tech giant is cutting orders for all iPhones around 20% compared to its plans in December," Morgan Stanley's Greater China Technology Hardware research team published a note that said their checks indicate build orders for iPhone 12 models excluding the mini and legacy iPhone 11 models are being revised up, not down, Huberty tells investors. In addition, Apple's Taiwanese suppliers are posting accelerating year-over-year growth and iPhone shipments in China remain strong, said Huberty, who keeps an Overweight rating and $164 price target on Apple shares | |
And this is what I am watching today: OLED, NTR, TRIP, ANET, AXNX, LOCO, REGN, ILMN, VRTX, FCX, and CMG.
Let's have a GREAT DAY!
-JB