Latest news with #KylePeterson
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street Analysts Are Bullish on This Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock -- Here's What You Need to Know
Some Wall Street analysts see Upstart rising by 50% or more. The company's results have improved since it released an updated AI model. Upstart is making progress in the large auto and home loan makrets. 10 stocks we like better than Upstart › When investors think of AI stocks, Upstart (NASDAQ: UPST) may not be the first that comes to mind. However, the company has a strong claim to the title. It's harnessed the power of machine learning and data science for a new credit platform that has been more accurate at assessing creditworthiness than conventional FICO scores, according to Upstart. As a stock, Upstart has been one of the more volatile names in the market as the business has considerable potential, but it has also struggled to turn a profit in recent years. Plus, any credit business is inherently risky, since loans could go bad if the economy sours, or Upstart's credit partners could stop buying its loans, eliminating the funding it needs to operate. Upstart's latest earnings report offered more reasons to be optimistic. Its transaction volume jumped 102% in the first quarter to 240,706 with originations up 89% to $2.1 billion. Meanwhile, its conversion rate improved from 14% to 19.1% because of an update in its AI model that makes as many as 1 million predictions per applicant to determine whether to lend to the applicant and what interest rate to charge. Overall, revenue jumped 67% to $213 million, and its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) improved from a loss of $20.3 million to a profit of $42.6 million. Now, several Wall Street analysts have turned bullish on Wall Street, and some see considerable upside to the stock. According to Tipranks, of the 11 analysts that have rated Upstart in the last three months, four analysts rate it a buy and seven call it a hold. However, the average price target for the stock is $65.33, or a 39% upside on average. Among the analysts that are most bullish on Upstart are Peter Christiansen of Citi, who rates the stock a buy and gives it a price target of $83; Dan Dolev of Mizuho, who gives it a buy rating and a price target of $83; and Kyle Peterson of Needham, who gives it a buy rating and a price target of $70. Christiansen has noted Upstart's increasing interest from private credit managers and improving partner network. Dan Dolev recently reiterated a buy rating after double upgrading the stock last year in response to the company's improved profitability, and it's capturing the benefits from AI in its updated model. Kyle Peterson of Needham also sees an improving funding backdrop and balance sheet at Upstart driving the stock higher. Wall Street forecasts on their own aren't a good reason to buy the stock, but they can alert you to good buys. Upstart has its share of naysayers as well. Nearly 25% of the stock is sold short, and Goldman Sachs gave it a sell rating in February with a price target of $15. However, Upstart's business is improving in multiple ways. In addition to the preceding numbers, the company is increasingly tapping into the auto and home loan markets, which represent the biggest addressable markets in front of it. In the first quarter, auto originations grew five times over the last year to $61 million, while home loans grew six times to $41 million. That still represents a small fraction of the company's business, but there is potential for it to get much larger. Upstart's business model is also scalable. The tech platform fully automates more than 90% of loan applications and can therefore scale up to make more loans at a relatively low marginal cost. Operating expenses grew by just 11% in the first quarter even as fee-based revenue was up 34%. Overall, Upstart's technology appears to give it a competitive advantage, and it's seeing momentum in customer demand and funding partnerships. If its momentum continues, its profit should rapidly improve. With a long runway of growth, Upstart looks like a good buy. Before you buy stock in Upstart, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Upstart wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $828,224!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025 Jeremy Bowman has positions in Upstart. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Upstart. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Wall Street Analysts Are Bullish on This Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock -- Here's What You Need to Know was originally published by The Motley Fool
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
How to watch Tennessee baseball Sunday in Knoxville Regional final: Time, TV channel
How to watch Tennessee baseball Sunday in Knoxville Regional final: Time, TV channel No. 14 national seed Tennessee (45-16) advanced to a NCAA Tournament Knoxville Regional championship game on Sunday. The Vols remain unbeaten after defeating No. 3 regional seed Cincinnati (33-25), 10-6, on Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The Vols were also victorious against No. 4 regional seed Miami University (35-23), 9-2, on Friday. Tennessee will face the winner between Wake Forest and Cincinnati in an elimination game on Sunday. First pitch between the Demon Deacons and Bearcats is scheduled for noon EDT. The winner will advance to play Tennessee at 6 p.m. EDT on Sunday. The Knoxville Regional winner will advance to face the winner from the Fayetteville Regional, hosted by No. 3 national seed Arkansas. Below is how to watch TV information for the Knoxville Regional of Sunday. What channel is the Knoxville Regional on? The Wake Forest-Cincinnati game will be televised by ACC Network. Tennessee against the winner between the Demon Deacons and Bearcats can be watched on ESPN+. Mike Monaco (play-by-play) and Kyle Peterson (analyst) will be on the call. Watch Knoxville Regional baseball on ESPN+ We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn't influence our coverage. Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
American Press
22-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Scooter Hobbs column: SEC a mish-mash in a no-lose situation
The Southeastern Conference baseball tournament is underway. Enjoy it. Embrace it. Binge-watch it. Excuse me for repeating old news. But I know it's the best six-day baseball entertainment you're going to find that, in reality, signifies next to nothing. It's all a fairly harmless prelude to the latest round of SEC fatigue set for Monday when, according to reliable projections, the conference will put 13 teams into the NCAA tournament when the bracket is announced. Worse yet, the conference could and probably will land as many as six of the coveted top eight national seeds. Sorting out the top teams in the league is the only challenge. It's complicated by the fact that this year the whole week is single-elimination. That's not how baseball postseason is supposed to be played, but who cares when it really doesn't matter. Maybe the SEC is trying to prove you can expand to 16 teams, still get them all in one tournament bracket and get it done in less than a week on one field. There could be a Nobel prize for mathematics in the offing. But single-elimination doesn't do much for the (relative) bottom-feeders trying to make a deep run and the worst that can happen to the front runners is one loss. Hard to imagine much mobility. Anyway, things look as murky as could be, filled with contradictions. LSU is waiting it out assuming it has locked up a top eight seed regardless of what ensues. The website is the most reliable of the wide array of college ball's various ratings and rankings. It's run by unapologetic college baseball junkies who, even during football season, live and breathe the seam head intricacies like WHIP (walks, hits per inning pitched), BQR-S (bequeathed runners scored) and even the mathematically unexplainable WAR (wins above replacement). Maybe, so you don't have to. I once told Kendall Rogers, one of the co-owners, that he'd go crazy if he had to cover a game without a radar gun. Kyle Peterson, the face of college baseball like Kirk Herbstreit is to football, is another of the owners. I just know, even while waiting on a definition for a 'bequeathed runner,' that it's my go-to horsehide spot on the usually shaky internet. That said, I'm still trying to decipher its latest logic here. It has LSU as the No. 1 team in the country in its rankings. In fact, the Tigers are the consensus No. 1 when the various other polls check in. I'd say unanimous, but there are so many ratings I could have missed one. Explain, please. Never mind that the Tigers finished tied for third in the SEC and are the third seed in the tournament — if they ever get around to playing in it. That'll be on Friday night, we are promised, in an affair that began Tuesday morning and by then 11 of the 16 teams will already have been sent home. Maybe LSU will end up No. 1 in the end. But even apparently has some mixed emotions. The same website that ranks LSU No. 1 in its national rankings has the Tigers projected as the No. 7 national seed. That makes the No. 1 Tigers the No. 6 SEC team among the all-important top eight. That predicts LSU behind No.1 Texas (finally, some love for the regular season SEC champ), No. 2 Arkansas, No. 3 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Georgia and No. 6 Auburn. That would be fine with LSU, of course. All that matters is being in the top eight. The order doesn't mean squat. History says so. In fact, the Tigers will be hoping their eventual NCAA tournament seed does not catch up with their current poll ranking. It's one of college baseball's sacred superstitions. Still, just to clear up an urban legend, it is not true, as widely misreported, that the No. 1 overall national seed has never gone on to win the national championship in the current format. It might as well be, however. Since this (perfect) format began it has happened once — but that was the very first year of the change when Miami won it all as the top seed in 1999. In other words never in this century. So, yes, it's best to stay away from that No. 1 overall seed. And, by the way, a bequeathed runner is one left out on base by a pitcher who departs the game. Happy to clear that up.
USA Today
10-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Tennessee baseball's updated RPI ranking after series-opening win over Vanderbilt
No. 12 Tennessee (39-11, 15-10 SEC) will return to acton Saturday with six games remaining in the regular season. The Vols will continue their in-state SEC home series against No. 10 Vanderbilt (34-16, 14-11 SEC). First pitch between the Vols and Commodores is slated for 5 p.m. EDT at Lindsey Nelson Stadium and will be televised by ESPN. Tom Hart (play-by-play), Kyle Peterson (analyst) and Jackie Bradley Jr. (analyst) will be on the call. Tennessee won game No. 1, 3-2, on Friday. The Vols entered the series opener with a 13 RPI on Thursday ahead of the SEC's first league game this week between Auburn and South Carolina. After defeating the Commodores on Friday, Tennessee moved up one spot with a 12 RPI. Vanderbilt remains ranked fifth nationally for RPI ahead of game No. 2. Sunday's series finale between the Vols and Commodores is scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT and will be televised by ESPN2. Tennessee's remaining regular-season schedule consists of hosting Belmont on May 13, and traveling to Arkansas for three-game series May 15-17. The SEC Tournament will be held May 20-25 at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Alabama. Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
USA Today
10-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Updated SEC baseball standings May 10
Updated SEC baseball standings May 10 Two weeks remain in the 2025 college baseball regular season for Southeastern Conference teams. The SEC Tournament will be contested May 20-25 at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Alabama, featuring all 16 league teams and a single-elimination format. In Friday's series opener, No. 12 Tennessee (39-11, 15-10 SEC) defeated No. 10 Vanderbilt (34-16, 14-11 SEC), 3-2, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Friday's game marked the beginning of Tennessee's final SEC home series this season. Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. Game No. 2 between the Vols and Commodores is scheduled for Saturday at 5 p.m. EDT. ESPN2 will televise the in-state matchup. Sunday's series finale is slated for 2 p.m. EDT (ESPN2). Tom Hart (play-by-play), Kyle Peterson (analyst) and Jackie Bradley Jr. (analyst) will be on the call. Ahead of Saturday's league games, Vols Wire looks at updated SEC baseball standings with five conference games remaining in the regular season. SEC baseball standings (May 10) Team SEC record Texas 19-6 Arkansas 17-8 LSU 16-9 Georgia 15-9 Tennessee 15-10 Auburn 16-11 Vanderbilt 14-11 Alabama 13-11 Oklahoma 13-12 Ole Miss 13-13 Florida 12-13 Mississippi State 12-14 Kentucky 11-14 Texas A&M 10-15 South Carolina 5-22 Missouri 1-24 Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
