Analysts downwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA), Seagate Technology PLC (STX), and United States Steel Corporation (X)
Analysts are weighing in on China-based e-tailer
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), data storage dynamo
Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX), and commodity concern
United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on BABA, STX, and X.
- Another day, another round of bearish brokerage attention for BABA. This time around, MKM Partners cut its price target on the stock to $95 from $105. The negative note comes as little surprise, considering Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has already lost 17.5% in the new year to trade at $67.03, and spent the last two months of 2015 failing to conquer the $84-$85 area. At the same time, there's plenty more room for future downgrades. Despite the shares' underperformance, 16 of 19 analysts still rate them a "buy" or better, with not a single "sell" rating to be found. If BABA -- off 0.7% pre-market -- continues to struggle, a fresh crop of downgrades could exacerbate selling pressure.
- STX is fractionally lower ahead of the bell, after being on the receiving end of a mixed round of brokerage notes. While Benchmark upped its opinion to "hold," no fewer than five analysts cut their price targets on the stock -- with UBS hacking the deepest, to $26 from $31. Technically speaking, Seagate Technology PLC has been stair-stepping its way lower for the past year since hitting an annual high of $63.39 in March -- and notched a three-year low of $26.25 last Thursday -- but popped 8.6% on earnings last Friday to close at $29.05. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), traders have been upping the bearish ante in recent weeks. Specifically, STX's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.52 registers above four-fifths of readings taken in the last year.
- X saw its rating lowered to "neutral" from "outperform" at Macquarie, and its price-target slashed to $4.50 from $5 at Deutsche Bank. As such, the shares are bracing for a 3.6% drop out of the gate -- business as usual for a stock that's lost over 67% since its August peak of $21.49 to rest at $7, and hit a record low of $6.15 last Thursday. Short sellers and option traders alike have been betting against United States Steel Corporation. During the latest reporting period, short interest on the stock rose 9% and now accounts for 43.2% of its float. Likewise, X's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 3.73 ranks just 6 percentage points from a 52-week high.
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