(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Tuesday’s analyst conference call and Wall Street chatter. Refresh every 20-30 minutes to see the latest posts.) Among the stocks analysts were talking about on Tuesday were media giants and sports betting companies. Goldman Sachs initiated coverage on Disney with a buy rating and a price target that suggests upside of more than 20%. Meanwhile, Raymond James downgraded Penn Entertainment to market perform from outperform. Elsewhere, Piper Sandler raised its price target on Uber, predicting upside of about 25%. Check out the latest conference call and chatter below. All times ET. 7:33 a.m.: Guggenheim initiates Rivian with a buy rating, predicts upside of 63% According to Guggenheim, Rivian’s outlook is promising. The investment firm initiated the electric car maker with a buy rating. Analyst Ronald Jusikow also set a price target of $18.That’s about 63% higher than Monday’s closing price. Rivian has plummeted 53% this year, but Jusikou believes a reversal later this year could boost the stock in the near term. “Investors should buy RIVN before EBITDA is expected to turn positive in mid-2026,” the analyst wrote. “While sentiment toward EVs remains negative, we believe RIVN is uniquely positioned to show a growing number of younger and digitally-oriented consumers that EVs are not only clean and green, but that software, technology and thoughtful design elements can provide a better product than internal combustion engine vehicles.” Meanwhile, Jusikou also believes Rivian’s R2 and R3 models could deliver “high teens gross margins” in a base case scenario. The company’s scalable, vertically integrated architecture should contribute to both a lower environmental footprint and a “superior consumer experience,” the analyst wrote. Jusikou added that Rivian is uniquely positioned to benefit from U.S. electric vehicle protectionism. The company could also benefit from a partnership with China’s electric vehicle market in the future. — Lisa Kailai Hung 7:18 a.m.: Truist upgrades BALL to buy, citing attractive fundamentals and valuation According to Truist Securities, BALL’s solid fundamentals and attractive valuation make it a good buy. Analyst Michael Roxland upgraded the industrial company’s shares to buy from hold. The analyst also raised his price target to $76 from $67. The updated forecast is about 23% higher than Monday’s closing price. Roxland noted that the recent sell-off made the stock’s valuation more attractive. “We believe the movement in BALL’s share price is largely an overreaction. We believe the company is expected to grow revenue at approximately 13-14% compound annual growth rate from 2024-2027 and approximately 11-12% compound annual growth rate from 2024-2030, which we believe is supported by cost management and productivity given the more modest volume growth outlook,” he wrote. Meanwhile, Roxland also cited Ball’s recent focus on costs and portfolio optimization as strengths. The company is also focused on optimizing its capital structure by prudently reducing debt and maintaining net leverage. Ball’s shares are up 7% this year. BALL YTD MOUNTAIN BALL YTD — Lisa Kailai Han 7:09am: UBS upgrades Cloudflare to neutral It’s time for Cloudflare to turn the tide, according to UBS. The bank upgraded the cloud and cybersecurity company’s shares to neutral from sell. Analyst Roger Boyd echoed the move, raising his 12-month price target to $82 from $76. Cloudflare is down 6% this year. Boyd’s new share price forecast suggests the stock could rise 4% from current levels. “We believe the stock is getting a more balanced risk/reward following GTM momentum, improving SASE checks, lowered Q1 guidance and lowered valuation,” Boyd wrote. “We believe that growth headwinds are reflected in the stock’s 12% decline since the first quarter.” Additionally, the analyst pointed to emerging artificial intelligence opportunities for the stock. Meanwhile, Cloudflare’s traction in enterprise security is promising, as is its competitive position in the secure access services edge space. — Lisa Kailai Han 6:55 a.m.: TD Cowen Says Gap’s Revenue Growth Potential is ‘Underestimated’ TD Cowen believes Gap’s revenue growth potential is “underestimated.” The financial firm upgraded the retail chain to a “buy” rating from a “hold.” Analyst Jonah Kim simultaneously raised his price target from $28 to $30, citing potential earnings upside. Kim’s latest share price forecast suggests the stock will rise 21%. Gap has risen nearly 19% this year. Kim pointed to “potential to beat market expectations for fiscal ’24, given solid sales momentum and margin expansion from continued inventory and expense management” as a catalyst. The analyst added that this year’s back-to-school season could be a near-term catalyst for Gap and Old Navy, and the new denim cycle will better position both brands heading into this season compared to last year. Kim cited Old Navy’s improving product assortment, signs of recovery for Athleta, and Gap’s collaboration helping “drive cultural relevance” as other strengths. — Lisa Kailai Han 6:27 a.m.: Citi upgrades Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng to neutral Citi said XPeng’s risk and reward are now neutral. The bank upgraded the Chinese electric vehicle maker’s shares to neutral from sell. Analyst Jeff Chang simultaneously set a target price of $8.30 on the stock, suggesting the shares could rise 5%. Chang cited XPeng’s strong product pipeline as one catalyst. “According to IHS, Xpeng will have a stronger model cycle than competitors, launching eight products (including facelifts) in 2024-26, with product life expectancy decreasing from 24 months in 2024 to 17 months in 2025,” he wrote. “We expect the company to launch a smaller car (MONA) and a PHEV model that could bolster Xpeng’s export business in the long term.” The analyst also noted that XPeng’s partnership with Volkswagen is helping the company improve gross margins and expand access to autonomous driving data. He also noted that the risk/reward of XPeng’s valuation now looks neutral, with Chong’s sell calls coming true over the past 18 months. XPeng shares are down nearly 46% in 2024. — Lisa Kai-Lai Han 5:57 a.m.: JPMorgan downgrades Sea to neutral JPMorgan said Sea’s outlook could worsen due to rising competitive pressures.The bank downgraded shares of the Singapore-based technology company to neutral from overweight. Analyst Ranjan Sharma has cut his price target to $78 from $84 in line with the move, meaning the stock could rise nearly 3% from here. Sea shares have risen an astounding 87% in 2024. SE YTD Mountain SE YTD “SE shares have risen 116% from their Jan. 24 lows, driven primarily by positive earnings revisions within e-commerce. We believe that incremental competition is likely to keep positive earnings revisions and the stock price in check in the near term,” Sharma wrote. The analyst added that this increased competition is mainly coming from TikTok in Indonesia and Temu in the Philippines and Malaysia. Moreover, cross-border regulations and tax hikes could also dampen the e-commerce business. — Lisa Kay-Lai Hung 5:50am: Piper Sandler calls Uber a “sleeping giant” and sees it rising 25% in the coming years According to Piper Sandler, the gig economy advertising opportunity makes Uber a “sleeping giant.” The firm reaffirmed its overweight rating on Uber and raised its price target to $88 from $86. Analyst Thomas Champion’s latest price forecast equates to a roughly 25% upside for the ride-hailing stock. “Like all two-sided marketplaces, gig economy stocks have high-margin advertising opportunities that AMZN has proven to be,” Champion wrote. “But UBER’s scale makes it a sleeping giant.” The analyst noted that Uber has beat expectations for EBITDA metrics by an average of 15% over the past 10 quarters. Champion therefore believes the company’s margin opportunities may still be undervalued. He added that Uber has the most potential when it comes to long-term advertising opportunities. “If we look at potential long-term ad attachment rates in dollar terms, UBER has the most upside potential through 27 years, with an estimated incremental $4.3 billion,” Champion said. Another catalyst going forward for the stock is Uber’s recent opening up of ride ads to programmatic buying on Google Display & Video 360, Trade Desk and Yahoo DSP. Champion noted that this could lead to access to roughly $46 billion in ad spend per year. Uber shares are up nearly 15% this year. — Lisa Kailai Hung 5:41 a.m.: Goldman Sachs Recommends Disney to Buy According to Goldman Sachs, Disney still has room to grow. The bank covers the entertainment giant with a buy recommendation and set a 12-month price target of $125. This means Disney shares could rise 23% from Monday’s closing price. Disney is up 13% this year. “Disney is a high-quality EPS compounding company that should achieve a 14% EPS CAGR (2024-2030 forecast) driven by 6% revenue growth, 9% EBIT growth, and contributions from share repurchases and other income,” analyst Michael Ng wrote. “This medium-term growth is anchored by world-class storytelling and content backed by ESPN’s long-standing portfolio of major sports rights.” The analyst pointed to Disney’s direct-to-consumer platform as a catalyst, saying it is one of the few streaming services strong enough to challenge Netflix. Content sales and licensing will also hit a cyclical bottom in 2023, but profitability in this segment should recover this year. Ng also cited ESPN’s direct-to-consumer initiatives and strong industry foundations in the cruise and theme park verticals as further strengths for the company. These investments (including the launch of three new cruise ships and the expansion of Disneyland Forward) could contribute roughly $10 billion in annual profits once completed, he added. — Lisa Kailai Hung 5:41 a.m.: Raymond James Downgrades Penn Entertainment According to Raymond James, it’s time to cash out on Penn Entertainment shares. Analyst RJ Milligan downgraded the casino and sports betting company to market perform from outperform. He also removed his $20 price target, which suggested just a 3% upside from Monday’s closing price. Milligan noted that the recent activist pressure and M&A rumors have buoyed the stock recently, limiting further upside going forward. Indeed, the stock has risen nearly 21% in the past month. “Because the path to monetization in the digital space remains unclear and we don’t foresee a dramatic shift in strategy (such as a complete sale of the company) in the near term, we recommend investors lock in profits and look for more risk-adjusted opportunities in the space,” the analyst added. “We also question whether PENN would be willing to sell in the short term, as the company has made a huge bet on its partnership with ESPN and will likely want to see how successful (or unsuccessful) it is over the course of the NFL season,” he said. Despite the recent gains, Penn State shares are still down more than 25% year to date. NVDA YTDMountainNVDA YTD—Fred Imbert
All the market-moving chatter on Wall Street on Tuesday
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