Two more brokerages issued price-target cuts to GIS after the food company's earnings miss
Analysts are weighing in on pharma stock Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB), toymaker JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ:JAKK), and packaged foods concern General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on shares of BIIB, JAKK, and GIS.
Raymond James Downgrades Biogen Amid Drug Competition
Biogen stock is down 0.8% to trade at $315.83, after Raymond James downgraded the pharmaceutical issue to "market perform" from "strong buy." The brokerage cited competition from Roche's new drug as the primary reason for the downgrade. BIIB stock has added 22% year-to-date, and broke out towards the end of August, pushing past a long-term resistance level to touch a two-year high of $330 last Wednesday. However, analyst sentiment is evenly skewed toward the drug stock. Of the 18 brokerages that cover BIIB, nine rate it a "strong buy," while the other nine rate it a "hold."
Toys 'R' Us Bankruptcy Prompts Downgrade To JAKK Stock
JAKK stock is down 7.1% to trade at $2.93, after D.A. Davidson downgraded the toymaker to "underperform" from "neutral," while also cutting its price target to $2.25 from $3.75. The downgrade comes after Toys R Us filed for bankruptcy earlier this week, which weighed on other
toy stocks. JAKK stock has shed 66% year-over-year, and fell to a record low $2.68 on Monday.
The shares could come under more pressure going forward, if analysts continue to trim their outlooks. As it stands now, the equity has an average 12-month price target of $4.15, representing 42% upside to current levels. Don't be surprise if additional price-target cuts come through on JAKKS Pacific.
General Mills Stock Receives Two More Earnings-Induced Price-Target Cuts
General Mills gapped lower yesterday after the company reported worse-than-expected
fiscal first-quarter earnings and lackluster sales. As such, GIS stock received two price-target cuts this morning to $58 and $57, from RBC and BMO, respectively. The security, which is currently down 0.6% to trade at $51.84, fell to a two-year low of $50.40 yesterday, and has shed over 20% year-over-year.
In the options pits, traders have preferred puts over calls for some time now. GIS has a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 1.01 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which ranks 3 percentage points from a 52-week high.