Latest news with #MariaRipps
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Canaccord Maintains Buy Rating on Spotify (SPOT), Lifts PT
On May 20, Canaccord increased the price target on Spotify Technology S.A. (NYSE:SPOT) stock from $700 to $775, keeping a Buy rating on the stock. Maria Ripps from Canaccord increased the price target after reviewing the Q1 FY2025 quarterly results of the music giant. Ripps mentioned that the earnings for the internet sector continue to favor top names with diversified business models that are less exposed to tariffs. Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash Despite missing the earnings estimate in Q1, Spotify Technology S.A. (NYSE:SPOT) reported strong subscriber growth, with the highest first-quarter net addition of 5 million since 2020, representing 12% growth year-over-year. Ripps cited that Spotify has multiple levers to mitigate any potential risk from tariffs. The company has expanded its Partner Program to nine new markets during Q1 and also paid out over $100 million to podcast creators during the quarter. Moreover, Spotify posted a 31.6% gross margin in Q1, exceeding guidance and growing by 400 basis points year-over-year. While we acknowledge the potential of SPOT to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than SPOT and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. Read Next: and . Disclosure. None. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Meta Stock Rises as Wall Street Bullishness Intensifies
Meta stock is on the rise. Shares of Meta Platforms (META), the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, jumped early Thursday, rising more than 4%. The shares remain off 2025 highs, but have jumped out of the hole into which they'd stumbled in April. The stock is being driven higher by quarterly financial results and related executive commentary, delivered last night, that investors are interpreting as a sign of strength in the tech trade. Earnings and revenue came in higher than Wall Street expected, and the company boasted of growing use of its AI offerings and reaffirmed big capital spending plans. Wall Street analysts were already bullish on Meta stock before the results, and several turned even more so after them. Bank of America lifted its target by $50 to $690, while JPMorgan boosted its own by $65 to $675. (The Visible Alpha average is around $689 today.) 'We know it's not that easy to execute so well [and] deliver strong growth off a big base,' JPMorgan wrote. 'But we believe Meta is keenly aware that with strong execution [and] AI transparency, it will get a longer leash from the Street on AI investments.' Canaccord Genuity's Maria Ripps on Thursday maintained an $825 price target that is substantially higher than any other currently tracked by Visible Alpha and which would represent a record high. The stock finished Wednesday at $549. 'While the company does face potential macro and regulatory headwinds, with shares still well off recent highs and a long runway ahead for AI-driven improvements to key business functions, we continue to view the stock as a core holding for tech investors,' Ripps wrote. Read the original article on Investopedia Sign in to access your portfolio
Globe and Mail
26-02-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Hims & Hers Health Sparks Investors Interest with Unusual Options Trading
Hims and Hers Health Inc. (HIMS) produced sterling results on Feb. 24, spurring huge interest in HIMS call options trading. Barchart reported an unusual volume today in HIMS call options that expire on March 14. HIMS is trading at $44.27 in morning trading on Wednesday, Feb. 26, up 11%. This was the result of huge investor interest in this $10 billion market cap company which sells GLP weight-loss compounds, and other telehealth-based products. As a result, the Barchart Unusual Stock Options Activity Report showed that over 1,000 call option contracts were traded at the $43.00 strike price for expiration on March 14. That was over 10x the prior number of outstanding contracts in this particle call option tranche. The investor interest in this call option has pushed the midpoint premium to $3.93 per call contract. That implies that in the next 16 days, the call option buyers hope to see HIMS stock rise to $46.93 or higher, in order for this call option to eventually have any intrinsic value. In other words, they want to see HIMS stock rise by 6.39% (i.e., $46.93/$44.11 price today) or higher in the next two weeks. That could be possible if the stock continues on its upward trajectory. On the other hand, the short-sellers of this particular call option tranche can make an immediate yield of 8.39% (i.e., $3.70 bid / $44.11). That is a very good two-week short sale yield for any investor who buys 100 shares for $4,411 and then sells these calls to make $370 per call contract shorted. Let's see what is driving the enthusiasm in HIMS stock. Strong Revenue and Free Cash Flow (FCF) Hims and Hers Health said its Q4 revenue rose 95% YoY and its full-year sales (mostly subscriptions) were up +69% YoY. Apart from its weight-loss product subscriptions, the company's sales were up 43% YoY. More importantly, the company is now solidly profitable on a free cash flow (FCF) basis. It reported that FCF was $59.5 million in Q4, up from $10.8 last year. That represented a solid FCF margin of 12.36 of its Q4 sales of $481.1 million. For the full year, its $198 million in FCF was 13.4% of its $1.477 billion in sales. That implies that the company's future sales growth could bring in huge increases in FCF. For example, analysts now project $2.32 billion in sales this year and $2.66 billion in 2026. That means that on a run-rate basis, its next 12 months (NTM) revenue could average $2.49 billion. Here is what that implies for FCF: 13% FCF margin x $2.49 b NTM sales = $323.7 million FCF Price Targets for HIMS Stock As a result, using a 2.0% FCF yield metric (i.e., 50x FCF multiple), the stock could potentially reach $16.18 billion: $323.7 million x 50 = $16,185 million = $16.18 billon $16.185/ $9.877 billion mkt cap today = 1.639 = +63.9% higher market value That means that a solid price target is $72.29 per share Analysts agree. For example, reports that Maria Ripps of Canaccord raised her price target from $63.40 to $68 per share after the company reported its earnings. The bottom line is that investors are keen on HIMS stock because of its strong earnings and FCF results. That could be why there is such huge interest today in these call options in HIMS stock.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Etsy Stock Declines Amid Q4 Shortfall But Long-Term Strategy Could Pay Off, Say Analysts
E-commerce company Etsy Inc (NASDAQ:ETSY) reported fourth-quarter FY24 earnings yesterday. The following are the opinions of different analysts on the same. Needham analyst Bernie McTernan reiterated a Buy rating on the shares and maintained a price forecast of $60.00. In the fourth quarter, GMS fell short of expectations, primarily due to ongoing challenges in consumer discretionary spending, noted the analyst. Additionally, the company chose to focus on long-term initiatives instead of short-term growth, along with a shorter holiday season. The shift to long-term investments is estimated to have impacted GMS by a few hundred million, but it also laid the groundwork for initiatives expected to drive growth in 2025, such as personalization, a new marketing mix, and app development. The analyst is taking a more conservative approach to the GMS model, assuming only a slight improvement in the YoY declines in the second quarter, 4% YoY declines in the latter half of 2025 and <1% GMS growth in '26E, considering this as a prudent approach given the uncertainty from leadership changes, strategic shifts, and ongoing macroeconomic pressures on consumer spending. ETSY is boosting customer engagement and frequency through initiatives like gifting, quality improvements, a new loyalty program, and app investments. Gifting sales in 2024 outperformed the broader marketplace, contributing 29% to total GMS. Although its still early, management is seeing promising signs of increased frequency and user engagement on Etsy Insider, noted the analyst. For FY25E, the analyst lowers GMS estimates by -6% and FY25E adj. EBITDA estimates come down by ~10%. The challenges impacting e-commerce consumer spending have affected the entire sector, but the analyst notes Etsy has the opportunity to emerge stronger. By leveraging the larger scale gained during the pandemic, Etsy can enhance the user experience, which should drive increased consideration for the marketplace and more frequent purchases, concluded the analyst. Also Read: Canaccord Genuity analyst Maria Ripps maintains a Buy rating on the shares and lowers the price forecast from $105.00 to $76.00. The analyst said that Etsy posted mixed results for the quarter, with active buyers, GMS, and revenue falling short of expectations, while take rate and profitability exceeded forecasts. Marketplace activity was sluggish in October and November, and the company acknowledged that prioritizing foundational product development over short-term GMS drivers led to a GMS headwind of several hundred million, impacting the fourth quarter and first quarter. However, Etsy returned to a more balanced product development strategy at the start of the year, expecting benefits to grow throughout 2025. With strategic initiatives like expanding Gifting, boosting loyalty program adoption, improving personalization, and increasing app downloads, management anticipates improving GMS year-over-year trends. Nevertheless, the first quarter is expected to be another tough quarter, with GMS declining similarly to the fourth quarter. Profitability expectations were slightly below forecasts, with margins expected to improve in the second half of 2025. Despite pressure on Etsy shares, the stock now trades at about 3x FY25 revenue and 10x adjusted EBITDA, suggesting significant negative sentiment is already priced in. If consumer discretionary spending rebounds and growth initiatives yield stronger results, investor confidence could recover, with further upside if the de minimis exemption is repealed and competition eases, noted the analyst. Price Action: ETSY shares are trading lower by 1.47% at $50.77 at the last check Thursday. Read Next:Image via Shutterstock. Date Firm Action From To Mar 2022 Deutsche Bank Initiates Coverage On Hold Feb 2022 Truist Securities Maintains Buy Feb 2022 UBS Upgrades Sell Neutral View More Analyst Ratings for ETSY View the Latest Analyst Ratings UNLOCKED: 5 NEW TRADES EVERY WEEK. Click now to get top trade ideas daily, plus unlimited access to cutting-edge tools and strategies to gain an edge in the markets. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? ETSY (ETSY): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Etsy Stock Declines Amid Q4 Shortfall But Long-Term Strategy Could Pay Off, Say Analysts originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Sign in to access your portfolio
