Analyst Downgrades: Twitter Inc, Keysight Technologies Inc, and Cerulean Pharma Inc

Analysts downwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), Keysight Technologies Inc (NYSE:KEYS), and Cerulean Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:CERU)

Karee Venema

Aug 18, 2016 at 9:26 AM

Analysts are weighing in microblogging platform Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), electronic equipment specialist Keysight Technologies Inc (NYSE:KEYS), and biotech stock Cerulean Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:CERU). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on TWTR, KEYS, and CERU.

Evercore ISI downgraded its outlook on TWTR to "sell" from "hold" and lowered its price target to $17 from $18, saying it sees more risk than reward in the stock due to increasing competition from Instagram and Snapchat. While shares of TWTR are down 2.6% ahead of the bell, they could find a foothold atop the round $20 mark. This area resisted Twitter Inc's early March advance, but has served as support this week in the wake of Monday's big pop, and coincides with a hefty amount of put open interest in the soon-to-expire August series. Longer term, TWTR has been bouncing back since hitting a record low of $13.73 in late May, up 47% to close last night at $20.17.

KEYS is 9% lower in electronic trading, after the company reported a fiscal third-quarter revenue miss and disappointing current-quarter guidance. While CEO Ron Nersesian cited continued "market headwinds" and "economic concerns in Europe," Goldman Sachs weighed in by lowering its price target to $24 from $25. More broadly speaking, the stock has jumped almost 41% since tapping an all-time low of $21.07 in mid-February, and closed last night at $29.68. Short-term options traders, meanwhile, are more put-heavy than usual. Keysight Technologies Inc's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.52 ranks in the 67th annual percentile.

After being briefly halted in electronic trading last night, CERU is bracing for a 63% plunge out of the gate, and a trip into record-low territory. The drugmaker released disappointing mid-stage trial results for its cancer treatment -- CRLX101 -- which just recently received "fast track" status at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and analysts were quick to chime in. Specifically, the stock was downgraded to the equivalent of a "neutral" at JMP Securities, Janney, and Leerink, with the latter two, as well as Roth Capital and Canaccord Genuity, lowering their price targets. Since topping out at a year-to-date high of $4.33 in late April, shares of CERU have shed almost 37%, and settled last night at $2.74. Short sellers, meanwhile, have been bracing for additional losses. In the past two reporting periods, short interest on Cerulean Pharma Inc shot up 17%.

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