Sarepta initiated, Spotify 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: 

• Oppenheimer upgraded Spotify (SPOT) to Outperform from Perform with an $800 price target. The firm cites the stock’s 14% pullback from the all-time high and the company’s “many tailwinds ahead” for the upgrade.
• Wolfe Research upgraded General Dynamics (GD) to Outperform from Perform with a $360 price target. The firm cites the company’s Q2 beat with an improved free cash flow and order outlook for the upgrade.
• Mizuho upgraded Travel + Leisure (TNL) to Outperform from Neutral with a price target of $72, up from $63. The firm views the shares as “incrementally compelling” following the underperformance versus Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV).
• Baird upgraded Icon (ICLR) to Outperform from Neutral with a price target of $224, up from $150. The firm has increased confidence in the shares after the four leading contract research originations posted sequential bookings improvement and stabilized backlog burn.
• Goldman Sachs upgraded Birkenstock (BIRK) to Buy from Neutral with an unchanged price target of $60. The firm sees “robust” momentum and an attractive valuation for Birkenstock in a challenging macro backdrop.

Top 5 Downgrades:

• Stifel downgraded Saia (SAIA) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $306, up from $277. While the firm still views Saia as “a very good company and well-positioned leader in the LTL space,” Stifel adds that Saia’s rapid network expansion strategy has coincided with sluggish volumes, which has recently produced a de-leveraging effect and margin erosion.
• Jefferies downgraded Johnson Controls (JCI) to Hold from Buy with an unchanged price target of $120. The firm cites valuation for the downgrade with the shares outperforming since April.
• Craig-Hallum downgraded STMicroelectronics (STM) to Hold from Buy with a $28 price target. The firm thinks investors should step to the sidelines until better visibility into orders and material improvement in gross margins is clear.
• Piper Sandler downgraded Goosehead Insurance (GSHD) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $109, down from $122, following the Q2 report. The firm says the company’s revenue growth missed its expectations in the quarter.
• Piper Sandler downgraded Chubb (CB) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $283, down from $335, post the Q2 report. The insurance cycle is starting to soften, and Chubb will not be able to avoid the effects, the firm tells investors in a research note.

Top 5 Initiations: 

• Citi initiated coverage of Sarepta (SRPT) with a Sell rating and $7 price target. The firm sees “substantial material forward risks” for Sarepta, including the potential withdrawal of Elevidys and possible additional liver-related fatalities with AAVrh74.
• Goldman Sachs reinstated coverage of HP Enterprise (HPE) with a Neutral rating and $22 price target following the company having closed its acquisition of networking company Juniper Networks on July 2. Despite a positive outlook on HP Enterprise’s Networking business, the firm says recent execution issues in Server and Hybrid Cloud keep it at Neutral on the stock.
• Mizuho initiated coverage of Braze (BRZE) with an Outperform rating and $40 price target. The firm says the company offers a “best-in-class” customer engagement platform for real-time, personalized messaging across channels.
• BofA initiated coverage of Elbit Systems (ESLT) with a Buy rating and $500 price target. The “leader in defense technology and innovation” based in Israel is a key supplier to Western Allies around the world and is currently benefiting from the global defense re-armament, the firm tells investors.
• Loop Capital initiated coverage of UFP Industries (UFPI) with a Hold rating and $112 price target. The firm says the company’s near-term end market demand and margin headwinds are offset by a positive long-term growth story.