Analyst Update: Five Below, Pan American Silver

Analysts adjusted their ratings and price targets on Five Below Inc (FIVE), Pan American Silver Corp. (USA) (PAAS), and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO)

Mar 23, 2016 at 2:44 PM

Analysts are weighing in on retail interest Five Below Inc (NASDAQ:FIVE), silver stock Pan American Silver Corp. (USA) (NASDAQ:PAAS), and analytics issue Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO). Here's a quick roundup of today's brokerage notes on FIVE, PAAS, and TMO.

FIVE is up 7.8% at $41.93 -- just off a new annual high of $42.26 -- after reporting fourth-quarter earnings above expectations and receiving price-target increases from Credit Suisse, RBC, and Dougherty & Company to $40, $44, and $53, respectively. The stock has been on a tear since bouncing off support at its 80-day moving average last month, and is now ahead 31% in 2016. The shares could continue their climb, should short sellers abandon their bearish positions. While short interest on Five Below Inc has already fallen more than 10% during the last two reporting periods, these pessimistic bets still account for about 22% of the stock's total float, or 12 days' worth of trading, at FIVE's typical daily volume.

If gold is taking a hit today, silver is getting clobbered, with May futures last seen down 3.7% at $15.29 an ounce. Deutsche Bank, meanwhile, cut its rating on PAAS -- along with a certain gold interest -- to "hold" from "buy," sending the shares down 4% to $10.43. Pan American Silver Corp. hit an annual high of $11.30 just two days ago, after more than doubling from its 13-year low of $5.38, seen in January. Overall, analysts have been wary of the stock, though, with only one out of seven rating it better than a "hold." But option traders have been eyeing continued upside. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity has a 50-day call/put volume ratio of 28.86 -- higher than 98% of all readings in the past year.

Goldman Sachs raised its price target on TMO to $156, sending the shares up 0.2% to $139.07. Traders are also digesting news that the company has been outbid by private firm Origin Technologies in its proposed merger with diagnostic specialist Affymetrix, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFFX), although Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. doesn't seem too concerned. AFFX is slated to vote on the offers next Thursday, March 31. On the sentiment front, short-term speculators have rarely been as put-skewed as they are now. In fact, TMO's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.89 sits just 2 percentage points from a 52-week peak.

For other stocks in analysts' crosshairs, read Analyst Upgrades: Adobe Systems Incorporated, Philip Morris International Inc., and Whiting Petroleum Corp and Analyst Downgrades: Barrick Gold Corporation (USA), HollyFrontier Corp, and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.

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