Analyst Update: Alibaba, IBM, and Under Armour

Analysts adjusted their ratings on BABA, IBM, and UA

Oct 24, 2014 at 1:45 PM

BABA
IBM
UA

Analysts are weighing in today on e-commerce site Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), blue chip International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM), and athletic apparel company Under Armour Inc (NYSE:UA). Here's a quick look at today's brokerage notes on BABA, IBM, and UA.

BABA has rallied 2.5% to $96.81, boosted by an "outperform" initiation and $110 price target at BMO. This positive analyst attention is par for the course for the Wall Street newcomer. All six brokerage firms covering Alibaba Group Holding Ltd have assigned it a "strong buy" rating. What's more, just 2.1% of BABA's float is sold short, which would take less than one session to buy back, at the equity's typical daily trading volumes.

IBM is off 0.3% at $161.67, following a price-target cut to $180 from $190 at Cowen -- which also reiterated its "market perform" assessment. This is just the latest in a series of bearish brokerage notes doled out on the shares since the company's disappointing earnings report earlier this week. Technically, International Business Machines Corp. is now sitting on a year-to-date loss of 13.8%, and has underperformed the broader S&P 500 Index (SPX) by more than 13 percentage points over the last month. As alluded to, the Street is decisively skeptical of the tech stock. IBM has received just four "buy" or better ratings from analysts, relative to 14 "hold" or worse ratings. Plus, the stock's consensus 12-month price target of $170.57 stands at a slim 5.5% premium to current trading levels.

UA is down 0.5% this afternoon at $64.04 -- but remains nearly 47% higher year-to-date -- after the latest round of analyst updates. Specifically, Goldman Sachs and Keybanc boosted their respective price targets to $62 (from $60) and $45 (from $41), respectively, while maintaining their "neutral" and "underweight" ratings. On the flip side, UBS cut its outlook to $68 from $70, while highlighting its "neutral" assessment of the shares. Taking a step back, there's plenty of room for Under Armour Inc to benefit from additional bullish brokerage notes. Twelve out of the 23 analysts covering the equity have handed out "hold" or worse ratings. Plus, UA's consensus 12-month price target of $70.60 stands just 10% above the current share price.

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