PayPal, Estee Lauder downgraded: Wall Street’s top analyst calls

The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today’s research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.

Top Upgrades:

• KeyBanc upgraded Atlassian (TEAM) to Overweight from Sector Weight with a $260 price target. Following the “strong” fiscal Q1 results, the firm feels better that Atlassian’s guidance is appropriately set to facilitate a more consistent “beat/raise cadence going forward.”
• Scotiabank last night upgraded Comcast (CMCSA) to Outperform from Sector Perform with a price target of $48, up from $47.75. Comcast’s domestic broadband losses were better than consensus expectations in Q3, highlighting seasonal tailwinds of back to school as well one-time factors, such as higher viewership from Paris Olympics, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• William Blair upgraded Argenx (ARGX) to Outperform from Market Perform following the Q3 report. The firm says that with the “clear outperformance” of the Vyvgart franchise in myasthenia gravis and the launch of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, it sees a growth trajectory for Argenx to maintain recently achieved breakeven and profitability.
• Jefferies upgraded Xcel Energy (XEL) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $76, up from $71. The firm cites increased EPS CAGR guidance yesterday with Q3 results, strides made on wildfire mitigation and de-risking efforts in an “expedited manner,” an attractive risk-adjusted rate base CAGR, load growth acceleration and balance sheet strength.
• Northcoast upgraded Wingstop (WING) to Buy from Neutral with a $350 price target.

Top Downgrades:

• Phillip Securities downgraded PayPal (PYPL) to Accumulate from Buy with a price target of $90, up from $80. The firm cites valuation for the downgrade following the stock’s recent performance.
• JPMorgan downgraded Estee Lauder (EL) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $74, down from $113. The firm cites the company’s “persistent” sales declines and limited visibility ahead that led management to withdraw guidance for the downgrade.
• Wells Fargo downgraded Zymeworks (ZYME) to Equal Weight from Overweight with an unchanged price target of $13. The firm thinks value for a zanidatamab approval in biliary tract cancer and royalties under the collaboration with Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ) are largely priced into the shares.
• Baird downgraded Argenx to Neutral from Outperform with a price target of $650, up from $515. The stock is up 65% to a $35B market capitalization over the last six months, driven by the strong last two quarters of revenue along with the R&D day event in July that unveiled the company’s “Vision 2030,” and is now pricing in “very strong growth” for Vyvgart over the coming quarters, the firm says.
• TD Cowen downgraded HII (HII) to Hold from Buy with an $180 price target. Shipbuilding execution challenges will linger, lowering absolute margin levels for an “extended period,” and there are no major near-term catalysts the firm sees coming to change this view, the analyst tells investors.

Top Initiations:

• Maxim initiated coverage of Silexion Therapeutics (SLXN) with a Buy rating and 30c price target. The company is several years away from data and commercialization in developing SIL-204, an updated formulation of its prior LODER therapy, but the two approved KRAS inhibitors were given Accelerated Approval on objective response rates, and it expects to initiate Phase 3 studies in 2026, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• Loop Capital initiated coverage of Boise Cascade (BCC) with a Buy rating and $155 price target. The company is well positioned to return to positive revenue growth and margin expansion in fiscal 2025 due to multiple catalysts, the analyst says.
• Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of Penguin Solutions (PENG) with a Buy rating and $21 price target. The company is well positioned to address the growing enterprise artificial intelligence compute opportunity through its Penguin Computing integrated solution, where the company has 25 years of experience designing, building, deploying and managing high-performance computing projects, Goldman says.