(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Thursday’s analyst conference call and Wall Street chatter. Refresh every 20-30 minutes to see the latest posts.) Retailers and beauty companies were among the stocks analysts were talking about on Thursday. Baird upgraded Elf Beauty to outperform and predicted upside of about 35%. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley upgraded Gap to overweight. Check out the latest conference call and chatter below. All times ET. 7:28 a.m.: VF Corp. could rise more than 20% as the Supreme sale cleans up its balance sheet. Citi Research raised its investment rating on apparel and footwear company VF Corp. to buy from neutral, citing a positively tilted risk/reward ratio for the company. Analyst Paul Lejuez raised his price target by $9 to $20, suggesting the stock could rise 23.8% over the next 12 months. The stock has fallen 14.1% this year, but rose about 17.5% this week on news that the company is selling its streetwear brand Supreme for $1.5 billion. VFC’s Lejuez said the sale, which was worth more than expected, was a “great investment.” [VF Corp] With both companies facing upcoming debt maturities, he said: “With this burden gone, VF Corp CEO Bracken Darrell can now focus on improving the rest of the business and growing the company’s sales and margins, rather than focusing primarily on cleaning up the balance sheet.” Lejuez added that VF Corp’s “weak margins provide an opportunity to improve significantly over the next few years with the company’s increased focus on its individual brands.” He noted that sales at Vans, the shoe subsidiary, may be nearing bottom after several years of struggle. — Pia Singh 6:56 a.m.: Bank of America maintains buy rating on ASML after Wednesday’s drop Bank of America has named semiconductor stocks its top pick and is favoring ASML, despite this week’s big selloff. Analyst Didier Semamo reiterated his buy rating and maintained his 12-month target price of $1,406, which means the stock could rise 50.8%. ASML shares have risen more than 23% this year, but the stock rose 14.1% on Wednesday as semiconductor stocks were sold off on concerns about possible tighter export controls from the U.S. “Focus on earnings,” Semama said in a note on Wednesday. “We view the near-term share price decline as an opportunity ahead of CMD. [Capital Markets Day] “We expect ASML to raise its 2030 revenue target toward the high end of its guidelines,” the analyst said on Nov. 14. The analyst expects ASML’s 2025 target could rise at the upcoming Capital Markets Day event due to reshoring and rising industry demand, and sees a 17% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in revenue and 20% EBITDA CAGR over the next four years. –Pier Singh 6:36 a.m.: Mizuho Securities upgrades Toast to outperform, sees potential cost savings could lift shares by more than 20% Mizuho Securities thinks Toast could become an even bigger retailer by lowering interchange costs. Analyst Dan Dolev upgraded the restaurant management software company to outperform from neutral and raised his price target by $12 to $33, meaning the stock could rise nearly 24%. The stock is up 45.8% this year. TOST YTD Mountain TOST YTD “The premium is justified, given TOST’s improving profitability and gross margin growth prospects, and the potential for lower processing costs in the medium term,” Dolev said, adding that he values the stock at a higher multiple than the overall fintech trading group. Toast could effectively become the fourth-largest retailer in the U.S. behind retail giants such as Walmart, with its sales approaching $200 billion by 2025, Dolev said. But Toast may be overpaying credit card interchange fees compared to larger retailers, and if the company can renegotiate these fees, he said, the cost of credit processing could “dramatically” fall in the medium term, which could “significantly improve” the company’s profitability. — Pia Singh 6:01 a.m.: Redburn Atlantic downgrades Palo Alto Networks as AI slowdown expected Growth could slow as Palo Alto Networks’ artificial intelligence (AI) boost appears to be just a short-term reaction rather than a sustainable boost, according to Redburn Atlantic. Analyst Nina Marquez downgraded Palo Alto to neutral and maintained her price target at $325. This means the cybersecurity services provider’s shares could fall 2.1% from Wednesday’s closing price. Marquez lowered her earnings forecast for Palo Alto, reflecting her view that generative AI won’t lead to a new “investment supercycle,” given slowing spending and deflationary effects, as well as early signs of increased competition putting pressure on future growth for cybersecurity companies. She noted that Palo Alto, up 12.5% year-to-date, continues to surge amid slowing growth for cybersecurity-related AI blue chips. “Near-term expectations were reset following the announcement of Palo Alto’s ‘platformization’ strategy,” Marquez said. The strategy has allowed the company to land multiple deals this year that move customers to its cybersecurity platform. “However, while consensus expects dollar growth to re-accelerate sharply after FY26, we think that’s unlikely,” the analyst added. “We view Palo Alto as more defensive, with a stickier customer base and a broader defensive wall.” — Pia Singh 5:45 AM: Morgan Stanley names Gap its most favored retail stock According to Morgan Stanley, Gap’s earnings momentum isn’t likely to fade anytime soon. Analyst Alex Straton upgraded Gap to overweight from equal weight, calling it one of the firm’s most favorable investment opportunities in its retail coverage. His $29 price target implies a potential upside of 26.4% for the stock, which has risen 9.8% this year. GPS YTD Mountain GPS 2024 “GPS is one of the few retailers where we see a long-term positive rate of change under new management,” Straton said in a note. Gap’s business continues to offer “the largest fundamental recovery opportunity” in both sales growth and profitability, Straton said. The stock is also trading at an attractive entry point and has an attractive valuation, he said. Straton added that there is room for valuations to temporarily rerate into the high teens if the retailer delivers better-than-expected earnings per share and earnings growth in the near term. Gap has beaten quarterly EPS estimates for the past five consecutive quarters, he said. — Pia Singh 5:45 a.m.: Baird upgrades ELF Beauty According to Baird, ELF shares have a strong buying opportunity. Analyst Mark Altschwager upgraded the beauty stock to outperform from neutral. He also raised his price target to $230 from $210, implying a 34.7% upside from Wednesday’s closing price. “With healthy brand momentum (including a strong first-quarter check), continued distribution expansion and significant international white space, ELF appears well-positioned to sustain market share gains and premium revenue growth even in a volatile consumer environment,” Altschwager wrote. The stock has risen more than 18% year to date.But it’s down 19% this week. “Additional tariffs on China if a Trump administration comes to power are a manageable risk given our demonstrated pricing power and still-attractive pricing relative to our peers,” Altschwager said. — Fred Imbert
All the market-moving chatter on Wall Street Thursday
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