Analyst Upgrades: Activision Blizzard, First Solar, Teva

Analysts are weighing in today on video game developer Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI), alternative energy issue First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR), and drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (ADR) (NYSE:TEVA). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on ATVI, FSLR, and TEVA.

• ATVI is in the bullish limelight, after the company topped Wall Street's expectations in the earnings confessional and upped its full-year outlook. No fewer than seven brokerage firms raised their price targets on the stock, with Wedbush setting the highest bar, at $37. After settling at $25.67 yesterday, Activision Blizzard, Inc. is poised to jump 6.8% at the open, which would put it in uncharted waters. Taking a step back, the positive attention mentioned above is hardly unique. In fact, all 17 analysts tracking ATVI have doled out "buy" or better ratings, and its consensus 12-month price target of $28.69 represents record-high territory. However, an unwinding among short stock positions could provide a sizable boost. Over 13% of the equity's float is sold short, representing more than six sessions' worth of pent-up buying power, at ATVI's average daily volume.


• FSLR is on track to soar 10% out of the gate, following the company's standout second-quarter earnings report -- including its first revenue beat in five quarters. Adding to the momentum, Cowen and Company boosted its opinion to "outperform" from "market perform" and its price target to $65 from $62, while Baird lifted its target to $69 from $66. On the flip side, Needham trimmed its expectations to $70 from $73. Today's anticipated bull gap is a welcome development, considering First Solar, Inc. closed at $44.50 yesterday -- a hair's breadth below its year-to-date flatline. Traders at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) have been gambling on a pop in recent months. FSLR's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 2.14 ranks in the 89th percentile of its annual range.


• TEVA saw its rating upped to "hold" from "sell," and its price target lifted to $72 from $51, at Berenberg. Relative to the stock's performance and the existing sentiment backdrop, though, the assessment isn't particularly impressive. After all, over two-thirds of covering analysts rate the security a "buy" or better. Additionally, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd has surged 23% in 2015 to rest at $70.69 -- less than 2% from Berenberg's new price target. Digging deeper on the charts, the shares are just a stone's throw away from their record high of $72.31, touched late last month on the heels of some well-received M&A news.

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