Jefferies Financial Group (JEF) has upgraded shares of shipping and logistics company FedEx (FDX) despite the company reporting mixed financial results and offering weak forward guidance.
Stephanie Moore, a top five-star rated analyst, upgraded FDX stock to Buy from Hold previously. However, she lowered her price target on the stock to $275 from $300. The new price target is about 15% higher than where FedEx’s shares currently trade.
An upgrade with a lowered price target reflects the difficulty seen with FedEx stock lately. So far this year, the company’s shares are down 13%, including a 7% pullback after FedEx recently delivered its quarterly financial results.
Tough Print
Federal Express, which is based in Memphis, Tennessee, just announced earnings per share (EPS) of $4.51, which was below the $4.63 expected on Wall Street. Revenue in the final months of last year came in at $22.16 billion, which was slightly ahead of the $21.88 billion forecast among analysts.
However, what really hurt the stock was that FedEx lowered its full-year profit and revenue forecasts, saying that demand remains weak and is being impacted by uncertainty caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.
The company has been trying to cut costs by $2.20 billion, and last December announced plans to spinoff its profitable freight division, which should happen later this year. Moore wrote in her report that investors are “overly distracted by the macro” and that FedEx’s cost reductions and restructuring will lead to future gains for shareholders.
Is FDX Stock a Buy?
The stock of FedEx has a consensus Moderate Buy rating among 19 Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on 14 Buy, three Hold, and two Sell recommendations issued in the past three months. The average FDX price target of $292.39 implies 20.63% upside from current levels.
