Analysts revised their ratings and price targets on Apple Inc. (AAPL), Red Hat Inc (RHT), and Intuit Inc. (INTU)
Analysts are weighing in on tech titan Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), software stock Red Hat Inc (NYSE:RHT), and business and tax specialist Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU). Here's a quick roundup of today's brokerage notes on AAPL, RHT, and INTU.
- AAPL received a price-target cut to $120 from $130 at Canaccord Genuity last night, even as the brokerage firm noted that it expects upgrade and replacement sales to improve for the upcoming iPhone 7, compared to the iPhone 6S. Apple Inc. was last seen 0.2% higher at $95.75, enjoying today's broad-market tailwinds, but further bearish analyst attention could weigh on the stock, which appears to be stuck beneath its declining 40-day moving average. At present, 83% of brokerage firms following AAPL rate the stock a "buy" or better, and the average 12-month price target of $124.52 sits at levels the shares haven't seen since last July, leaving plenty of room for more downgrades to come.
- RHT is down 2% at $78.13, after the company's first-quarter earnings report and plans to acquire API management firm 3scale failed to impress. BMO and Stifel both cut their price targets on the stock, to $85 and $87, respectively. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs raised its target by $2 to a relatively modest $75 -- still below the shares' current value. Red Hat Inc has climbed 31% since hitting an annual low of $59.59 in early February, but once-hopeful option bulls could be flee the scene after today. Specifically, the stock's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 3.30 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks higher than 95% of the past year's readings.
- Goldman Sachs raised its price target on INTU to $123 from $117 and added the stock to its "Americas Conviction Buy" list, boosting the shares 1.5% to $108.00. Intuit Inc. has already added nearly 12% in 2016, recently closing its huge August bear gap, and tapped an annual high of $108.95 earlier this month. But more than half of the analysts providing coverage are sitting on "hold" or "strong sell" ratings, suggesting more upbeat attention could be ahead. Elsewhere, near-term options traders have been taking an unusually put-heavy approach of late. The stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.26 sits in the 88th percentile of its annual range.
For other stocks in analysts' crosshairs, read Analyst Upgrades: Boeing Co, Micron Technology, Inc., and Visa Inc and Analyst Downgrades: Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc, and Tesla Motors Inc.