Analyst Upgrades: LinkedIn, Tetraphase Pharma, Visa

Analysts upwardly revised their ratings on LNKD, TTPH, and V

Dec 18, 2014 at 9:29 AM

LNKD
TTPH
V

Analysts are weighing in today on professional networking site LinkedIn Corp (NYSE:LNKD), drugmaker Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:TTPH), and credit card giant Visa Inc (NYSE:V). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on LNKD, TTPH, and V.

Wells Fargo initiated coverage on LNKD with an "outperform" rating. On the charts, the shares have outperformed the broader S&P 500 Index (SPX) over the past couple months, and -- at $219.78 -- are currently resting atop support at their 50-day moving average. However, traders at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) have bought to open more puts than calls over the last two weeks. Specifically, LinkedIn Corp's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.12 across this trio of exchanges sits 9 percentage points from an annual high. If the stock continues to outpace the broader market, a capitulation among these option skeptics could result in tailwinds. Just ahead of the bell, LNKD is up 2%.

TTPH has tacked on more than 145% this year to trade at $33.19 -- just 3 cents shy of yesterday's all-time peak of $33.22 -- and is poised to open 15% higher following a successful late-stage trial of its antibiotic, eravacycline. The brokerage bunch is cheering the news, too, as the stock has received no fewer than 10 upwardly revised price targets -- including JMP Securities' hike to $58 from $32, which represents the most ambitious outlook. Taking a step back, all of the analysts covering Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Inc have handed out a "buy" or better rating. However, the equity's consensus 12-month price target of $27.80 represents a discount to current trading levels, paving the way for this morning's rush of positive analyst notes.

Finally, V saw its price target raised by $40 to $300 at Credit Suisse, which also reiterated its "outperform" assessment. On the charts, the stock has added 16.3% in 2014 to sit at $259.08 -- not far from its record high of $265.63, touched one week ago. Additionally, Visa Inc has outperformed the SPX by 20 percentage points during the last three months. As such, the brokerage bunch is overwhelmingly in the bulls' corner. In fact, 20 out of 24 covering analysts rate V a "buy" or better, versus four "holds" and not a single "sell."

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