Markets closed higher on Wednesday, with a surge in the last 30 minutes of trading pushing indexes into the green. The S&P closed up .34% while the Nasdaq added .74%. Asia markets closed mixed overnight and Europe stocks are following suit this morning. U.S. futures are pointing to a lower open, the Dollar and Yields are higher while Oil and Gold are lower.
And this is what UPB is reading this morning:
It was a choppy session on Wednesday as stocks tried to find some footing after Tuesday's bloodbath. Stocks looked like they were going to close lower only to see a strong bid come in at 3:30 to close green. Back in the day there was the plunge protection team around to save the day, almost felt like that yesterday. This morning we got retail sales numbers that came in above expectations. Good news is bad news in this current environment so will be interesting to see how this plays out today. Hate to want to see bad news but seems that will be when the market starts to turn the corner. The SPY held $390 yesterday. Would want to see that hold this morning or I will look for some more TZA calls as a hedge:
TWLO announced a workforce layoff yesterday and reaffirmed their guidance. It reversed pre-market lows to head higher after the open and thought the stock would see some buyers so added some calls. I was able to close most of the calls out for some nice profits and held some into today for a possible test of $80. Will be quick to close the last of my calls out on a break under $76.50:
BHC was rallying yesterday as they company announced an early debt payment announcement. I went and added some lotto calls for a possible move over $8.50 into tomorrow. Still think this is possible and may actually look for some later dated strikes. BHC has always been a debt story since the Citron Research hit piece years ago. Without the debt this is a $40+ stock:
PETQ closed down for the third day in a row. Still have plenty of time on my calls but will need to start finding some buyers here soon:
HUM raised their guidance this morning and should put bids in all the healthcare names. Was eyeing CI for some calls past 2 sessions but passed on the weakness. Will be watching at the open to add some calls for a move into the high $290s and possible $300s in the coming days:
Its been a rough week for APRN... after testing $8 the stock has been in free fall, closing near $6 yesterdays and is gapping lower this morning. Still love the story and will continue to hold my calls. The short interest also increased nearly 26% after the last update:
A solid recovery session for EVH yesterday. Only a matter of time before this is over $40:
Still eyeing U and SPOT for some possible call; entries as well:
Here are the analyst changes of note for today:
| e.l.f. Beauty price target raised to $50 from $40 at Truist |
| Truist analyst Bill Chappell raised the firm's price target on e.l.f. Beauty to $50 from $40 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The analyst states that his recent discussions with the company management have left him more confident in its momentum heading into the second half of 2022. Chappell adds that e.l.f. Beauty has multiple growth drivers and market share opportunities over the next few years while highlighting the company's potential for margin expansion |
General Mills price target raised to $79 from $77 at UBS |
| UBS analyst Cody Ross raised the firm's price target on General Mills to $79 from $77 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares ahead of its Q1 results next week. The analyst says that based on the accelerating consumption trends in Nielsen-tracked channels, he sees better-than-expected organic sales growth for the company, which he also expects to translate into a gross margin beat |
Marathon Digital price target lowered to $22 from $30 at DA Davidson |
| DA Davidson analyst Christopher Brendler lowered the firm's price target on Marathon Digital to $22 from $30 but keeps a Buy rating on the shares. Bitcoin miners are being pressured by higher interest rates, falling BTC prices, spiking power costs, and rising network competition, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Brendler adds however that Marathon Digital shares' risk/reward is attractive at these levels, and he remains positive on the company's growth acceleration and "impressive" liquidity position |
| Starbucks price target raised to $96 from $88 at Morgan Stanley |
| Morgan Stanley analyst John Glass raised the firm's price target on Starbucks to $96 from $88 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares after the company outlined what he called "ambitious but credible plans" to accelerate U.S. sales growth at its investor day meeting. The resulting financial targets for 10-12% revenue growth, 7-9% global same-store sales growth, 7% global unit growth and 15-20% EPS growth for FY23-25 strike him as "achievable but ambitious," though they "set a high bar that some may view as creating an overhang," Glass tells investors |
| Biden focused EV initiatives step in right direction, says Wedbush |
| Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives Today the Biden Administration announced $900 million in grants for EV chargers across 35 states in the first round of $7.5 billion in funding appropriated through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law while the key Inflation Reduction Act passed in August has significant tax incentives around catalyzing future EV consumer purchases. With today roughly 110k charging stations deployed in the U.S., at a minimum there needs to be 500k by the end of the decade to get to 20%/25% EV penetration levels with 50% a clear stretch goal domestically speaking, the analyst notes. "Clearly time is ticking in the Beltway" as GM (GM), Ford (F), and other auto Detroit stalwarts head aggressively down the EV path over the coming years, Ives says. A nationwide charging network is a "key missing piece in the puzzle" around longer-term EV initiatives within the U.S. for the Detroit 3 as the Tesla (TSLA) supercharger network continues to be a major competitive steel moat that will be hard to break into for the likes of GM and Ford |
| AMD removed from Best Ideas List at Wedbush |
| Wedbush removed AMD from its Best Ideas List due to the firm's investment price discipline. Analyst Matt Bryson has an Outpeform rating and a price target of $125 on the shares |
| Constellation Brands price target raised to $287 from $263 at JPMorgan |
| JPMorgan analyst Andrea Teixeira raised the firm's price target on Constellation Brands to $287 from $263 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares ahead of the company's Q2 results on October 6. The analyst thinks overall the beer setup is "largely favorable" in Q2 and that the on-premise should continue to be a tailwind |
| Pinterest potential catalysts to lead to outperformance, says Baird |
| Baird analyst Colin Sebastian revisited his positive call on Pinterest as he believes an earlier start to holiday shopping could help improve usage/engagement trends ahead of the Q3 earning report. He also sees potential catalysts from faster/improving execution on growth/monetization opportunities, including e-commerce capabilities, while the company's profitable and scalable business model and lack of privacy/IDFA exposure should set Pinterest apart from display and social platforms. Sebastian reiterated his Outperform rating and $30 price target on Pinterest shares |
And here is what I am watching today: CI, HUM, BHC, U, SPOT, TWLO, TZA, ICPT CMG, WING, PTCT, SAGE, APRN, ZS, and ROKU.
Let's have a great day!
-JB