Investing.com -- Here is your Pro Recap of the top takeaways from Wall Street analysts for the past week.
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JD.com
What happened? On Monday, Loop Capital upgraded JD.com (NASDAQ:JD) to Buy with a $48 price target.
*TLDR: Loop Capital expects 4% Q3 revenue growth, boosted by trade-in rebates and prudent management. 2025 outlook conservative; price target reduced to $48 due to higher expenses and no revenue boost.
What’s the full story? Loop Cap believes that Q3 estimates are achievable, with expectations of higher spending in the fourth quarter. The brokerage is comfortable with an acceleration to 4% revenue growth for Q3, driven by a strong September, where government-sponsored trade-in rebates boosted sales of home appliances and consumer electronics. They anticipate an inline-to-better bottom-line result for Q3, noting that management has been prudent during the consumption spending downturn. An inline Q3 would mean that the year-to-date net margin has increased from 2.0% to 3.6% over the past two years. With the potential for a stimulus-driven inflection in consumption spending, Loop expects management to return to growth investment in Q4 and 2025.
In their 2025 outlook, the brokerage takes a conservative stance. While increasing their expense outlook, they await details on fiscal stimulus before adjusting their topline outlook. Loop assumes a spending increase without incremental revenue, which lowers their GAAP EPS estimate by $0.18 and reduces their price target from $49 to $48.
Buy at Loop means “The stock is expected to trade higher on an absolute basis or outperform relative to the market or its peer stocks over the next 12 months.”
Deckers Outdoor
What happened? On Tuesday, BTIG downgraded Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NYSE:DECK) to neutral without a price target.
*TLDR: BTIG sees balanced risk/reward; UGG’s holiday season is slow, upside from wholesale, not DTC. HOKA’s growth moderates; shares trade 30% above five-year averages, vulnerable to growth slowdown.
What’s the full story? BTIG now views the risk/reward profile as more balanced based on recent checks. The firm notes a slower start to the holiday season for UGG, with any potential upside likely coming more from wholesale than direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels, which may not be rewarded by investors at current valuation levels. Additionally, there are signs that HOKA’s growth is moderating after a robust multi-year run, as competitors begin to catch up.
Despite shares pulling back from their highs, they continue to trade at multiples approximately 30% above their five-year averages. This makes the stock vulnerable to moderating growth and even minor disappointments relative to expectations.
Neutral at BTIG means “A security which is not expected to appreciate or depreciate meaningfully over the next 12 months.“
Snap
What happened? On Wednesday, JMP Securities upgraded Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP) to Market Outperform with a $17 price target.
*TLDR: JMP expects Snap’s new ad products to boost engagement and ad load in North America. New price target for Snap is $17, justified by product catalysts and higher ad load.
What’s the full story? JMP Securities anticipates a significant increase in impression growth for Snap with the upcoming rollout of Simple Snapchat and the launch of Sponsored Snaps. The analysts believe these new ad products will enhance U.S. and North American engagement and drive a higher ad load. Feedback from larger performance advertisers has been positive, indicating that Snap’s direct response product improvements are gaining traction. Although there is some uncertainty regarding the timing of the rollout and initial user reactions, JMP analysts are optimistic about Snap’s product-led growth initiatives and find the valuation compelling at 15.5x 2026E EBITDA.
JMP has set a new price target of $17 for Snap, based on 25.0x 2026E EBITDA. This premium to the peer group is justified, according to JMP analysts, due to Snap’s product catalysts in its redesign and increasing ad load.
Market Outperform at JMP Securities means “…expects the stock price to outperform the Russell 3000® Index over the next 12 months”
Verizon
What happened? On Thursday, Keybanc downgraded Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) to Sector Weight
*TLDR: Keybanc downgrades Verizon due to limited EBITDA growth and declining free cash flow in 2025. Verizon’s potential Frontier acquisition and higher device subsidies seen as poor capital allocation.
What’s the full story? Keybanc analysts have downgraded Verizon due to several factors, despite much of their prior view remaining intact. The downgrade is primarily driven by limited room for EBITDA acceleration in 2025, with estimates at 1.5% compared to 2.2% in 2024, and a likely decline in free cash flow growth, projected at $17.5 billion in 2025 versus $20.2 billion in 2024. Additionally, Verizon’s potential acquisition of Frontier Communications (OTC:FTRCQ) is seen as a poor capital allocation decision, limiting the possibility of share repurchases.
Furthermore, Keybanc analysts highlight the slowing improvement in Verizon Consumer Group (VCG) postpaid phone net additions, coupled with higher device subsidies, which means spending more for the same growth. The analysts will look for a pullback in valuation or upside to expectations to become more constructive on the stock.
Sector Weight at Keybanc means “We expect the stock to perform in line with the analyst's coverage sector over the coming 6-12 months.“
Denny’s
What happened? On Friday, Citi upgraded Denny’s (NASDAQ:DENN) to Buy with a $7.50 price target.
*TLDR: Denny’s store closures and cost discipline to boost profits; flat unit growth from 2026. Citi sees favorable risk-reward; shares trading at 6.1x CY25E EBITDA with 9% FCF yield.
What’s the full story? Citi analysts have provided three key updates that investors have been eagerly awaiting. Firstly, Denny’s accelerated store closures are expected to establish a stronger base, potentially leading to flat unit growth from 2026 onwards. Secondly, the company is demonstrating greater cost discipline, with a planned 5-6% reduction in core G&A spending over the next few years, alongside tech upgrades that are expected to boost store-level profits. Lastly, there is now a clearer view of KeKe’s growth plans, including both comparable sales and new store openings.
While Citi analysts acknowledge the challenges facing the category and brands, they see credibility in several initiatives such as remodels, ongoing customer experience and brand work, a reset of the value offering, and a more relevant marketing message. With shares trading at 6.1x Citi’s CY25E EBITDA (9% FCF yield), it appears that investors are not fully recognizing the potential positives, making the risk-reward profile favorable to the upside.
Buy at Citi means “Buy (1) ETR of 15% or more or 25% or more for High risk stocks.”