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June 2018 |
Archives |
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Friday, June 29, 2018, 10:23 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Improved Execution at Benefitfocus |
Shares of Benefitfocus (BNFT, $33.90), provider of a cloud-based benefits management platform, have rallied sharply from the 52-week low of $21.75 reached in the middle of March, hitting a high of $36.75 on May 18.
Piper Jaffray raises its BNFT price target to $40 from $31, citing improved sales execution and visibility into 2019. The firm believes strong bookings and new carriers announced on the upcoming Q2 earnings call could drive upside to the 2H’18 outlook and further “de-risk” 2019.
Piper now looks for 2019 revenue growth of 12% (in line with the consensus), up from its previous estimate of +10%. |
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Friday, June 29, 2018, 9:41 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
RBC Capital Remains Upbeat on Intel |
RBC Capital maintains its Intel (INTC, $49.58) price target at $60, saying the June quarter may see a modest earnings beat thanks to positive overall end-market trends.
The firm points to strong momentum from the data-centric business; robust cloud cap-ex & enterprise IT spending trends; and continued stability in the broader PC market. |
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Thursday, June 28, 2018, 11:01 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Citi Boosts Tableau PT to $123 |
Citi raises its Tableau Software (DATA, $95.12) price target to $123 from $107, saying it now has more conviction in the company headed into 2019. The firm believes Tableau’s ongoing subscription transition will drive a positive inflection in the numbers.
Tableau shares are down from the 52-week high of $105.78 reached on June 20. The recent pivot low of $92.01 was set on Monday. |
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Thursday, June 28, 2018, 10:49 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Arista Networks Gaining Share |
Credit Suisse continues to like Arista Networks (ANET, $254.40), citing the company’s strong market position and recent share gains in datacenter switching.
In Q1, Arista grew its revenue market share to 14.8% (up 210 basis points), taking share from Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Huawei, according to IHS Markit.
Credit Suisse maintains its ANET price target of $303.
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Wednesday, June 27, 2018, 10:27 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Needham Goes Back to 'Buy' on Okta |
Calling it the clear leader in identity access management, Needham upgrades Okta (OKTA, $50.40) to ‘Buy’ with a price target of $58 following the recent pullback in the shares.
The firm said its prior downgrade (on June 5) was based solely on valuation, not fundamentals.
Needham believes Okta’s current 1.4x valuation premium to its peer group is justified given the company’s growth profile, noting a 60% increase in billings in the latest quarter.
On June 7, Okta traded to a new all-time high of $61; at Monday’s low of $48.31, the shares had retreated nearly 21%.
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Wednesday, June 27, 2018, 9:44 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Deutsche Bank Upgrades Marvell |
Deutsche Bank upgrades Marvell Technology (MRVL, $20.64) to ‘Buy’ with a price target of $24 based on an improved risk/reward balance for the stock following the recent pullback.
Marvell shares are down from the 52-week high of $25.18 reached in early March.
The firm continues to see EPS power of $1.75 in 2020 for Marvell combined with Cavium (CAVM). |
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Tuesday, June 26, 2018, 10:31 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Atlantic Equities Bullish on Microsoft |
Atlantic Equities upgrades Microsoft (MSFT, $99.54) to ‘Overweight’ with a price target of $125 based on growth prospects for the cloud business.
“Azure has replaced Windows as the platform underpinning Microsoft’s enterprise offering,” according to the firm.
While Atlantic Equities does not see Azure establishing “the monopoly position that Windows enjoyed,” it believes the cloud unit is “addressing a much larger market that’s still in the early stages of development.”
The firm models AWS and Azure revenue reaching $185 billion and $115 billion in 10 years’ time, respectively. That implies a roughly 70% combined share of the market at that time. As of now, Microsoft’s share is estimated at 13%, up from 10% a year ago.
Microsoft has already established a strong position in the SaaS market with Office 365, and there remains robust growth potential as the greater accessibility of the cloud delivery model continues to drive both expansion in the user base and established customers steadily upgrading from basic packages, says the firm. |
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Tuesday, June 26, 2018, 10:02 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Argus Ups Microchip Target to $115 |
Argus lifts its Microchip Technology (MCHP, $93.50) price target to $115 from $106 following the completion in late May of the $10.3-billion Microsemi acquisition, saying the combination of the two companies results in operating efficiencies that will drive margin expansion going forward.
The firm sees the deal strengthening Microchip’s presence in non-technology markets (such as aerospace/defense) as well as in the fast-growing tech markets (datacenter and communications infrastructure). |
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Tuesday, June 26, 2018, 9:19 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Bernstein Downgrades Intel |
Bernstein downgrades Intel (INTC, $50.71) to ‘Underperform’ and reduces its price target to $42 from $54, citing the recent CEO change, EPS growth slowing into 2019 as comps get tougher and structural issues build as well as an increasingly competitive environment, exacerbated by process technology push-outs.
The firm calls out potential P/E multiple compressions and downside risk to numbers. |
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Monday, June 25, 2018, 9:44 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
2 Views on Intel |
Nomura Instinet downgrades Intel (INTC, $51.38) to ‘Neutral’ and reduces its price target to $55 from $60, calling the departure of Brian Krzanich as CEO “disappointing on multiple levels.” In the server market, the firm believes Intel will face stiff competition into 2019 from AMD (AMD).
BofA/Merrill lowers its INTC price target to $62 from $70, but maintains its ‘Buy’ rating based on long-term growth prospects for 5G and a positive view of the datacenter segment. The firm does point out that datacenter comps in 2019 will be tougher, driven by the 10nm server being delayed until 2020 and share loss potential to AMD. |
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Monday, June 25, 2018, 9:28 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Needham Ups Radware PT to $32 |
Needham raises its Radware (RDWR, $25.05) price target to $32 from $26 based on the argument that the company is gaining traction in SaaS security.
The firm is bullish on Radware’s growth prospects, competitive strength and ability to win market share.
In May, Radware announced it would be providing attack mitigation hardware and subscription services to a major SaaS provider in a multi-million dollar deal. The customer is using Radware’s Hybrid Cloud DDoS and SSL protection in three new datacenters. |
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Friday, June 22, 2018, 10:27 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
JP Morgan: Cisco Valuation Attractive |
JP Morgan reiterates its Cisco Systems (CSCO, $42.98) price target of $58, saying it thinks the stock is trading at an attractive valuation relative to a peer group of hardware/software companies, “particularly when viewed in the context of an increasing mix of software and recurring revenue.”
Cisco’s transition to more software and subscriptions sets the company up for higher earnings growth, better cash flow metrics and further P/E multiple re-rating, argues the firm. |
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Friday, June 22, 2018, 10:05 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Needham: EA Creating 'Netflix of Games' |
Needham raises its Electronic Arts (EA, $142.43) price target to $170 from $135, saying the company is building the “Netflix of games.”
The firm—citing increasing usage of Spotify, Pandora, Netflix and Hulu—believes millennials want to rent content rather than own it.
Content companies with data about what their consumers view, play and use create valuation upside from programming, e-commerce and advertising revenue streams, says Needham. In addition, subscription revenue streams also reduce revenue volatility from “hit” titles, implying higher valuation multiples.
EA’s new Origin Access Premier tier (announced on June 9) is designed to identify and create a closer relationship with EA’s best (highest-value) customers, says Needham.
For FY’19, Needham estimates EA will generate about $240 million of subscription revenue. |
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Thursday, June 21, 2018, 11:17 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Atlantic Equities Upgrades PayPal |
Atlantic Equities upgrades PayPal (PYPL, $86.19) to ‘Overweight’ with a price target of $99, saying the company’s ability to innovate to maintain a competitive advantage sets it apart.
The firm believes the differentiated checkout experience at PayPal should enable the company to continue to take market share. |
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Thursday, June 21, 2018, 11:03 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Chart Watch: Zscaler |
After trading as high as $43.98 on June 11, Zscaler (ZS, $35.75) has been hit by some selling pressure, causing the stock to slip below Tuesday’s low of $36.36.
There’s a gap on the price chart running from $31.50 to $34.85. The 50-day moving average is trending upward from $30.36. |
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Wednesday, June 20, 2018, 9:58 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Goldman Upgrades Mimecast |
Goldman Sachs upgrades cybersecurity solutions vendor Mimecast (MIME, $46.20) to ‘Buy’ with a price target of $53, saying the company’s market share gain is accelerating on the back of a positive inflection in average order value, which indicates momentum in the move up-market.
The firm believes Mimecast “still has a good runway for share gain.” There’s also the potential for an expanded total addressable market (TAM) as management executes on its medium-term roadmap, says Goldman.
Mimecast shares this morning are up more than 7%. The stock hit a new all-time high at $46.85. |
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Wednesday, June 20, 2018, 9:44 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
PayPal Buying Hyperwallet |
PayPal (PYPL, $85.42) has agreed to buy Hyperwallet, a global payout platform, for $400 million in cash.
Loop Capital says the acquisition is a “strategically positive” action that moves the company into an adjacent payments arena. The firm says the deal will help move PayPal closer to providing traditional banking services (including debit cards and checking accounts), while making the company more competitive with other firms (such as Green Dot) that are already providing these services.
Stephens says it sees the strategic rational behind the deal being to help the company win new and international marketplaces. The firm doesn’t think this transaction precludes PayPal from doing larger potential deals, such as one for Stripe. Stephens maintains its PYPL price target of $90. |
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Tuesday, June 19, 2018, 10:14 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Dropbox Dips |
After jumping 45% in five sessions, Dropbox (DBX, $39.76) shares are taking a break. The stock this morning is down more than 5%.
From the June 12 low of $29.92, Dropbox stock yesterday hit a new post-IPO high of $43.50.
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Tuesday, June 19, 2018, 9:55 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Chart Watch: Skyworks |
Shares of Skyworks Solutions (SWKS, $99.52) have dipped below the 200-day moving average at $101.68.
There’s short-term support around $98.20. The 50-day moving average has begun to trend upward from $96.93. |
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Monday, June 18, 2018, 9:55 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
UBS Lifts NVIDIA Target to $285 |
UBS raises its NVIDIA (NVDA, $263.84) price target to $285 from $266 based on the company’s positioning in AI technology associated with real-time facial recognition.
The firm believes the facial recognition market represents a roughly $5-billion incremental TAM by 2020 for deep learning silicon. |
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Monday, June 18, 2018, 9:33 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
BTIG Research Downgrades Rapid7 |
BTIG Research downgrades Rapid7 (RPD, $30.03) to ‘Neutral’ based on valuation, noting that further increases in the stock price would require the company to exceed its 2020 targets.
The firm remains positive on Rapid7’s transformation into a “comprehensive platform for security, IT analytics and security ops automated solutions,” as well as its transition to a subscription-based revenue model.
Rapid7 shares this morning are down 10% at the open. |
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Friday, June 15, 2018, 11:28 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
HubSpot Hits New All-Time High |
Shares of HubSpot (HUBS, $136), a provider of cloud-based marketing & sales software, this morning hit a new all-time high at $136.75.
HubSpot is a holding in the Tech-Stock Prospector Small-Cap Portfolio, added in July 2016 at $42.52. The stock’s total return since then is 219.8%. |
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Friday, June 15, 2018, 10:10 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Citi Turns Negative on Splunk |
Citi downgrades Splunk (SPLK, $114.94) to ‘Sell’ with a price target of $98, saying the company’s growth drivers are “plateauing.” The firm thinks the stock’s high valuation makes it “vulnerable.”
The firm argues Splunk is facing increasing competition as well as adoption challenges caused by a “persistently unconventional” pricing model. Citi also thinks the company’s market share in security is nearing levels where others have had challenges.
Splunk shares yesterday hit a new all-time high at $121.64. The stock ended 2017 at $82.84. |
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Thursday, June 14, 2018, 9:39 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
JP Morgan Downgrades Oracle |
JP Morgan downgrades Oracle (ORCL, $46.50) to ‘Neutral’ and lowers its price target to $53 from $55, pointing out the firm’s recent survey of 154 CIOs that showed the company receiving the largest number of indications for planned spending contraction this year. The firm notes the projected contraction for Oracle is materially more than the second-worst company.
The CIOs are indicating contraction in Oracle spending this year, putting the company in the same position as IBM (IBM), Check Point Software (CHKP) and CA (CA), says JP Morgan. |
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Thursday, June 14, 2018, 9:32 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Davidson Ups Amazon PT to $2,100 |
DA Davidson lifts its Amazon (AMZN, $1,712) price target to $2,100 from $1,900, citing an updated model that’s projecting incremental revenue generated by the company’s private-label and advertising efforts relative to prior forecasts. The firm raises top-line growth projections by 1% for the forward years. |
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Wednesday, June 13, 2018, 9:37 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Chart Watch: Arista Networks |
Shares of Arista Networks (ANET, $276.75) found short-term support at $268.60. There is short-term resistance at $280.60.
The 50-day moving average—now at $258.84—turned upward in early June. The 200-day moving average continues to trend higher from $238.08. |
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Wednesday, June 13, 2018, 9:28 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
UBS: Microsoft Undervalued |
UBS thinks Microsoft (MSFT, $101.54) is undervalued based on the company’s emerging cloud story and the durable on-premises legacy businesses. The firm reiterates its MSFT price target of $114.
The firm believes the strength of the Azure platform can be a key differentiator for the company.
On the game side, Microsoft content is taking center stage, as the company has acquired four game studios and formed a fifth, says UBS. |
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Tuesday, June 12, 2018, 10:02 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Microsoft Gaming Model in Transition |
Morgan Stanley says the gaming division at Microsoft (MSFT, $101.27) is “moving from Gillette to Netflix,” meaning the model is being transformed from a “razor/razor blade” one built on the Xbox console base toward a subscription gaming service streaming from Azure to all types of devices.
The addition of five new development studios to underpin Microsoft’s first-party content particularly supports this view, according to the firm.
Morgan Stanley maintains its MSFT price target of $130.
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Tuesday, June 12, 2018, 9:26 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Citi Bullish on Intel |
Citi reiterates Intel (INTC, $54.52) as its top semiconductor pick after May notebook shipments increased 26% sequentially, above normal seasonality of +15%.
Over the past three months, the 2018 consensus EPS estimate for Intel has advanced to $3.84 from $3.55, while the 2019 consensus has risen to $4.05 from $3.80. |
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Monday, June 11, 2018, 12:32 PM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Microsoft Getting Bigger in Games |
Bernstein says Microsoft (MSFT, $101.51) is increasing its investments in the the games sector, including adding five new creative teams to Microsoft Studios and making talent acquisitions to bring on more top developers.
Microsoft is making numerous small acquisitions and launching significant new game development capability, says the firm.
Bernstein maintains its MSFT price target of $123. |
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Monday, June 11, 2018, 12:23 PM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Monness Crespi Bullish on Qualys |
Monness Crespi & Hardt upgrades Qualys (QLYS, $84.50), a provider of cloud-based vulnerability management and compliance solutions, to ‘Buy’ with a price target of $94, saying the company has multiple growth drivers in the security space. The firm likes the high level of recurring revenue and cash generation at the company. |
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Friday, June 8, 2018, 1:18 PM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Chart Watch: Palo Alto Networks |
Palo Alto Networks (PANW, $199.59) shares are testing the 50-day moving average at $197.16 after taking out short-term support at $199.87. The next support area is $189 to $190. The 200-day moving average continues to trend upward from $164.05. |
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Friday, June 8, 2018, 12:38 PM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Workday Acquires Rallyteam |
Workday (WDAY, $124.66) is pushing further into machine learning. The company today announces the acquisition of Rallyteam, a provider of talent management and optimization solutions. The company’s mobility platform uses machine learning to help companies better understand and optimize their workforces by matching a worker’s interests and skills with relevant jobs, prospects and tasks. |
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Thursday, June 7, 2018, 9:28 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
KeyBanc Boosts Okta Target to $65 |
KeyBanc raises its Okta (OKTA, $54.14) price target to $65 from $57, saying the company is flourishing because its vendor-agnostic approach meets the emerging demand for cloud-based identity.
Last night, Okta reported FQ1 (April) revenue growth of 60%. |
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Thursday, June 7, 2018, 9:21 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
UBS Lifts CyberArk PT to $71 |
UBS lifts its CyberArk Software (CYBR, $64.33) price target to $71 from $64, citing better visibility into growth drivers, stabilization in the sales organization compared to a year ago, an easier-to-consume portfolio and technical advancements that have removed adoption friction. |
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018, 11:34 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
A New High for Tableau |
Tableau Software (DATA, $101.02) shares this morning hit a new 52-week high at $101.58. The 50-day moving average is accelerating upward from $88.35. The RSI stands at 75.2. The next significant resistance stands at $104.95 from November 2015.
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Wednesday, June 6, 2018, 11:24 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Cornerstone Expands with IBM |
Shares of Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD, $51.88), a provider of cloud-based HCM/HR solutions, is expanding its strategic relationship with IBM.
As part of the arrangement, IBM will now directly engage with Cornerstone customers to offer talent management consulting services. IBM’s increased involvement could help drive larger software deals for Cornerstone.
Cornerstone shares today hit a new 52-week high at $51.91.
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Tuesday, June 5, 2018, 10:35 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Microsoft Makes a Strategic Purchase |
Piper Jaffray thinks the $7.5-billion acquisition of GitHub, a coding platform used by developers and companies, by Microsoft (MSFT, $102.15) is “extremely strategic.”
The deal favorably positions Microsoft in the workflow for creating the next generation of applications, says the firm. Piper sees the potential for meaningful synergies across the business, particularly in the cloud unit.
The firm reiterates its MSFT price target of $115. |
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Tuesday, June 5, 2018, 10:25 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Jefferies Boosts Palo Alto Target |
Jefferies lifts its Palo Alto Networks (PANW, $203.68) price target to $239 from $206, as it believes the company is benefiting from a product cycle that will continue for at least several more quarters.
Palo Alto is also doing what its customers are asking for by offering consolidated solutions with best-of-breed capabilities in each category, says the firm. |
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Monday, June 4, 2018, 9:37 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
SunTrust Ups Amazon PT to $2,000 |
SunTrust lifts its Amazon (AMZN, $1,652) price target to $2,000 from $1,900, calling the stock one of its favorite names.
Amazon is expanding into offline distribution, building a private label business at scale and challenging Facebook & Google as a major marketing platform, says the firm. |
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Monday, June 4, 2018, 9:23 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Cowen Remains Bullish on Cisco |
Cowen reiterates its Cisco Systems (CSCO, $43.66) price target of $51, pointing out that management has made a case that the emergence of public clouds and the migration toward a multi-cloud world presents the company with greater opportunity than risk.
Cisco can generate revenue opportunities from both public cloud operators and enterprises, says the firm. |
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Friday, June 1, 2018, 10:07 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
Needham Lifts Square PT to $65 |
Needham raises its Square (SQ, $58.76) price target to $65 from $58, citing an open-ended growth story in payments. The firm believes the Weebly acquisition (the $365-million deal closed yesterday) provides a solid e-commerce platform to bolster Square’s omni-channel capabilities and competitive position.
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Friday, June 1, 2018, 9:28 AM — by Rob DeFrancesco, TechStock Radar |
UBS Raises Apple Target to $210 |
UBS raises its Apple (AAPL, $186.87) price target to $210 from $190, saying it thinks the narrative on the company is shifting.
While the focus has been on iPhone unit sales, the firm argues investors are increasingly viewing Apple as a “consistent franchise with low single-digit hardware growth augmented by higher-margin, faster-growing services.” |