Analyst Upgrades: Facebook, Qualcomm, Regeneron

Analysts are weighing in today on social network Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), chip concern QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM), and drugmaker Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:REGN). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on FB, QCOM, and REGN.

• FB, which is set to report earnings Wednesday evening, announced plans over the weekend to expand its Internet.org initiative in India. This morning, the stock is on the receiving end of price-target hikes from Cowen and Company (to $110), SunTrust Robinson (to $125), and Raymond James (to $110). The bullish notes are well-deserved, considering Facebook Inc shares have shot up more than 24% year-to-date to trade at $96.95, and last week touched a record high of $99.24 following a prior round of positive analyst attention. Option traders, too, expect more upside from FB. During the last two weeks across the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity has amassed a call/put volume ratio of 3.16, which ranks in the 97th percentile of its annual range.


• Amid news that QCOM has appointed a new president for its India-based business, Morgan Stanley upgraded its rating on the stock to "overweight" from "equal weight." The bullish outlook is curious, given the security's 17% year-to-date deficit at $61.64 -- as well as its two-year low of $60.83, touched last Thursday on the heels of lackluster guidance. In fact, unless it reverses its technical trajectory, QUALCOMM, Inc. looks vulnerable to future downgrades and/or price-target cuts. Fourteen of 24 analysts currently rate the underperformer a "buy" or better, and its consensus 12-month price target of $71.90 stands at a 16.7% premium to Friday's close.


• REGN saw its price target raised at RBC (to $570), Jefferies (to $502), and BMO (to $494). On the charts, the stock has been a beast, surging almost 79% year-over-year to rest at $541.85, benefiting from consistent support atop its 10-week moving average. Option traders aren't sold on Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc, though. The stock's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 1.51 ranks above 90% of comparable readings from the previous year. Echoing this, REGN's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.35 sits in the 73rd percentile of its annual range. A reversal in this negative sentiment could spark a move higher. One possible catalyst could be the company's upcoming earnings report, due out the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 4.

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