Analysts downwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Carnival Corp (CCL), VeriFone Systems Inc (PAY), and Lululemon Athletica inc. (LULU)
Analysts are weighing in on cruise ship operator
Carnival Corp (NYSE:CCL), electronic payments specialist
VeriFone Systems Inc (NYSE:PAY), and yoga apparel maker
Lululemon Athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on CCL, PAY, and LULU.
- CCL is sinking this morning, dropping 49% at $46.33, after a downgrade to "underweight" from "equal weight" at Morgan Stanley, which also lowered its price target on the stock to $48 from $54. The brokerage firm noted a monthly survey that suggested weak demand for cruises in August -- a normally strong month. The losses bring Carnival Corp's year-to-date deficit to 15%, which is just fine with put traders. Specifically, CCL's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 3.20 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) comes in higher than four-fifths of all readings from the past year.
- PAY is in the midst of a second straight post-earnings sell-off, after the company released a disappointing full-year outlook. A series of bearish analyst attention has ensued, including downgrades to "neutral" at both Piper Jaffray and Wedbush. Goldman Sachs was one of 10 brokerages to weigh in with a price-target cut, setting its target at $21, and saying "the company's fundamentals may take some time to improve." VeriFone Systems Inc was last seen 18.7% lower at $16.33 -- after hitting a fresh three-year low of $16.07 earlier -- bringing its year-over-year drop to roughly 47%. More bearish notes could be forthcoming, too, since the majority of covering analysts held a "buy" or better rating on PAY as of yesterday's close.
- LULU is also getting crushed this morning -- which is good news for short sellers -- as a second-quarter earnings beat is overshadowed by weak same-store sales and a disappointing outlook. Cannacord Genuity chimed in with a price-target cut to $65 from $70, saying it sees "risk skewed to the downside," while Wedbush raised its price target to $84 from $82. Still, Lululemon Athletica inc. is on pace for its biggest percentage drop since last December, down 9% at $69.78. At the same time, the round $70 level -- which isn't far from the stock's average 12-month price target of $72.90 -- may be able to offer support for LULU.
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