Under Armour downgraded, Snap upgraded: 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 5 Upgrades:

• Morgan Stanley upgraded Snap (SNAP) to Equal Weight from Underweight with a price target of $16, up from $12. The firm’s latest advertiser/agency conversations speak to improvements in Snap’s ad business, including 7.0 attribution tools and an increase in advertiser willingness to test direct response offerings more broadly, the firm tells investors.
• Citi upgraded Coinbase (COIN) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $345, up from $260. Coinbase shares are up 52% year-to-date, the opportunity from a more conducive regulatory environment is “too large to ignore,” contends Citi.
• HSBC upgraded Krispy Kreme (DNUT) to Buy from Hold with an unchanged price target of $14. The company announced the sale of its majority stake in Insomnia Cookies and is moving towards a leaner structure, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded Skechers (SKX) to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $80, up from $60, as part of a broader research note on Branded Apparel and Footwear. The company “scored impressively high” on the firm’s global brand momentum and perception survey scorecards, while the recent North America / E.U. sports- wear channel checks for Skechers was also “upbeat,” leaving the firm “incrementally positive on the brand.”
• Wells Fargo upgraded Equinix (EQIX) to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $875, up from $825. Data center demand was solid in Q2, albeit not at records, although demand should re-accelerate again in the second half of 2024, the firm tells investors in a research note.

Top 5 Downgrades:

• HSBC downgraded Crowdstrike (CRWD) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $302, down from $388. The firm says near-term risks have arisen following the global IT outage.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded Under Armour (UAA) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $4, down from $8, as part of a broader research note on Branded Apparel and Footwear. The company’s customers’ next-12-months propensity to spend screened in-line with its major sportswear peers, but its brand momentum ranking was “notably worse” in popularity, loyalty, and change in past 12 months spending, resulted in an aggregate ranking that was below its competitors, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• Bernstein downgraded American Airlines (AAL) to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $12, down from $18. Commercial missteps are expected to limit American’s participation in the second half of 2024 pricing up cycle, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• Daiwa downgraded Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) to Neutral from Outperform with a price target of $150, down from $160. The firm is concerned about intensifying competition in medical sales, and expects lower medical device prices and higher tax rates.
• TD Cowen downgraded Darden Restaurants (DRI) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $150, down from $170. The firm expects the shares to “stagnate,” saying a lack of tangible sales drivers in a tough full-service industry backdrop presents greater risks than tailwinds to Darden’s fiscal 2025 guidance for 1%-2% portfolio same store sales.

Top 5 Initiations:

• Argus initiated coverage of DoorDash (DASH) with a Hold rating with no price target. TArgus notes DoorDash shares are trading at a premium on a price to sales basis compared to its peer group and in line with the peer group on enterprise value to sales, and its management will need time to navigate near-term challenges amid new legislation and new product verticals.
• Raymond James initiated coverage of Zscaler (ZS) with a Market Perform rating and no price target. The firm acknowledges Zscaler’s leading position in a “very attractive” end market but says the company’s “elite financial profile” is rightly reflected in its current valuation multiple.
• Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of LandBridge (LB) with a Buy rating and $35 price target. The firm is constructive on the outlook for the company, saying its New Mexico-Texas Stateline acreage is well positioned to capture continued Permian Basin growth, notably for produced water disposal. Wells Fargo and Raymond James also started coverage of the name with Buy-equivalent ratings. Meanwhile, Barclays, Piper Sandler, and Citi initiated the stock with Neutral-equivalent ratings.
• Morgan Stanley initiated coverage of Alumis (ALMS) with an Overweight rating and $36 price target. The firm says that while key de-risking catalysts for ESK-001 are in 2026, the stock’s current valuation offers an attractive entry point relative to peers. Leerink, Cantor Fitzgerald, and Guggenheimer also started coverage of the name with Buy-equivalent ratings.
• Piper Sandler initiated coverage of Indivior (INDV) with an Overweight rating and $22 price target. The firm says that despite a “messy” near-term following the guide-down, the company’s visibility into sizable longer-term top-line and EBITDA growth is high.