Analyst Upgrades: Tesla Motors Inc, NVIDIA Corporation, and Zumiez Inc.

Analysts are weighing in on electric car concern Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), semiconductor specialist NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), and specialty retailer Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ:ZUMZ). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on TSLA, NVDA, and ZUMZ.

• Jefferies raised its price target on TSLA to $365 from $360 -- expecting the shares to rally into uncharted territory. While the stock is up nearly 18% year-to-date, TSLA has put in a more lackluster showing recently, shedding 8.5% since hitting an annual high of $286.65 in late July to trade at $262.25. Short-term speculators are more call-heavy than usual, though, per Tesla Motors Inc's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.06, which ranks in the 35th annual percentile. From a contrarian perspective, a lofty accumulation of call open interest could translate into headwinds for a stock that's been struggling on the charts.


• Jefferies also chimed in on NVDA, upping its outlook to "buy" from "hold" and its price target to $30 from $23 -- an area not visited since January 2008. Specifically, the brokerage firm waxed optimistic on NVIDIA Corporation's growth opportunities, and said, "With 20% of gaming sales occurring in the U.S., we think U.S. investors haven't yet internalized how rapidly the eSports industry has grown." Against this backdrop, shares of NVDA are up 1.7% ahead of the bell, after closing last night at $23.10. Longer term, the stock has added more than 15% this year, and is fresh off an Aug. 10 four-year high of $23.95. More upgrades could come down the pike for the outperformer, considering 65% of covering analysts maintain a "hold" or worse recommendation.


• In the wake of last week's earnings-induced bear gap, ZUMZ saw its rating raised to "buy" from "hold" at Stifel. As such, the shares are 2.8% higher ahead of the bell, after settling Wednesday at $14.88. Still, the stock is staring at a 61.5% year-to-date deficit, and notched a five-year low of $13.75 on Monday. Option traders have been rolling the dice on more downside, and at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), speculators have bought to open 1.42 puts for every call during the last two weeks.

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