One name got slapped with an "underperform" rating
With earnings season in full swing, traders are reacting to a deluge of quarterly confessions today. Two such names that just threw their hats into the earnings ring are Paris-based marketing firm Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) and chip manufacturer Cree, Inc. (NASDAQ:CREE). Below, we'll take a look at the post-earnings analyst attention surrounding CRTO and CREE stocks, and how they're faring midday.
Criteo, which posted its quarterly report after the close last night, announced a third-quarter profit of 54 cents per share on revenue of $522.61 million, both of which topped analysts' estimates. However, weaker-than-expected current-quarter revenue guidance and news the company will be appointing Megan Clarken as its new CEO may be what sent the shares of the marketing name slicing through the $16.50 region to hit a new all-time low of $16.29 earlier today. Now, the stock is eyeing its lowest close on record, too, down 7.3% at $16.34, at last check.
This dramatic downside is no doubt sparked, in part, by the analyst drubbing that followed the company's earnings report. While J.P. Morgan Securities downgraded the stock to "underweight" from "neutral," it joined at least five other firms in lowering its CRTO price target -- dropping its target all the way down to $16. The consensus 12-month price target price is docked at $22.86.
CREE is also trading lower after the semiconductor name's latest report. In fact, the stock touched a new nine-month low of $40.46 earlier, after the company offered weaker-than-anticipated current-quarter guidance, which is offsetting Cree's slimmer-than-expected adjusted fiscal first-quarter loss and revenue beat.
This has also attracted bear notes from at least four analysts, with Cowen slashing its price target to $45 from $50, predicting that 5G delays and the Huawei ban will have a negative impact on CREE's radio frequency business. J.P. Morgan Securities also chimed in, lowering its recommendation to "underweight" from "neutral," predicting rough waters for Cree in the next six to 12 months on rising demand for electric cars, which could lead to technical and manufacturing challenges.
It looks like the brokerage bunch had already turned a cautious eye toward CREE, though. The consensus 12-month target price of $49.72 is just slightly higher than the stock's current perch, and, prior to today, 80% of those covering the equity considered it a "hold" or worse. At last glance, Cree is trading down 0.6% at $47.58.