Analyst Upgrades: Intel Corporation, Target, Netflix

Analysts are weighing in today on chipmaker Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), retail chain Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT), and streaming giant Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on INTC, TGT, and NFLX.

• INTC was met with a bevy of bullish brokerage attention after the company's fourth-quarter earnings results exceeded consensus estimates. Among those weighing in on the stock were Deutsche Bank, which boosted its price target to $42 from $40, and B. Riley, which raised its target price to $43 from $40. Additionally, both brokerage firms reiterated their respective "buy" ratings. Not everyone is as optimistic, though, with Jim Chanos -- founder of hedge fund firm Kynikos Associates -- saying his firm has been short on the shares for the past six months, a time frame in which Intel Corporation has tacked on nearly 8% to trade at $36.32. What's more, the equity has been making a series of higher highs of late, and tagged a 13-year high of $37.90 in early December. Should this momentum continue, another round of price-target hikes could be on the horizon. The stock's consensus 12-month price target of $36.23 is within striking distance of current trading levels.


• In the wake of TGT's announcement that it is discontinuing its operations in Canada, the stock received upwardly revised price targets from Morgan Stanley (to $73) and J.P. Morgan Securities (to $77). The equity has done well on the charts over the past 52 weeks, tacking on 24% to trade at $74.65. Additionally, the security hit its highest perch on record -- $77.75 -- as recently as Jan. 8. In spite of this, sentiment is skewed toward the skeptical side. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), TGT's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.91 ranks in the 98th annual percentile. Plus, it would take more than six sessions to cover all of the security's shorted shares, at average daily trading volumes. Should Target Corporation continue to linger in record-high waters, an unwinding of these bearish bets could translate into a fresh burst of buying power.


• Cowen and Company raised its outlook on NFLX to "outperform" from "market perform," and upped its price target by $22 to $382, sending the shares 0.8% higher out of the gate to $326.21. The stock has struggled since hitting a record high of $489.29 in mid-September, shedding 33% amid pressure from its 10-week moving average. Options traders -- and analysts -- have been hopeful for a bounce. In fact, the stock's 50-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX call/put volume ratio of 1.08 ranks in the 96th percentile of its annual range. Simply stated, calls have been bought to open over puts with more rapidity just 4% of the time within the past year.