Analyst Upgrades: Dr Pepper Snapple, Hasbro, Monsanto

Analysts upwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (DPS), Hasbro, Inc. (HAS), and Monsanto Company (MON)

Feb 9, 2016 at 9:59 AM

Analysts are weighing in on beverage company Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE:DPS), toy maker Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS), and agricultural issue Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on DPS, HAS, and MON.

DPS is trading up 0.4% at $89.33, after UBS raised its price target on the stock by $1 to $90. In addition to outperforming the broader S&P 500 Index (SPX) in recent months, Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. hit an all-time high of $95.87 at the beginning of February. Still, option traders have been rather pessimistic -- at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the stock has a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 0.79 -- higher than 85% of all readings in the past year. Meanwhile, of the 14 analysts following the equity, 11 rate it a "hold" or worse, leaving plenty of room for upgrades, which could boost the shares further.

Barclays increased its price target on HAS to $73 from $62 after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that easily surpassed analyst predictions on Monday morning. "Star Wars" merchandise created a big boon for Hasbro, Inc., which is trading down 0.2% at $74.99 today -- paring its year-to-date gain to 11.3%. The stock could stand to benefit from more bullish analyst attention. At present, 80% of brokerage firms give the security a tepid "hold" rating. Elsewhere, it appears some option traders will be cheering today's action -- HAS holds a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 4.58 on the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX -- a ratio that ranks higher than two-thirds of comparable readings in the last 12 months.

MON got a price-target hike to $102 from $98 at Jefferies this morning, sending the shares 0.3% higher at $91.53. Monsanto Company has been trying to stage a comeback since bouncing off the $87-$88 region in late January and early February, but the shares have were swiftly rejected by their 160-day moving average on Friday -- a trendline that halted MON's late-December advances. In the options pits, MON's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 8.12 is in the 97th percentile of is annual range, indicating pessimism has been near a yearly high in recent weeks.

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