Analyst Upgrades: Dick's Sporting Goods, Pandora, and Qorvo

Analysts upwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Dick's Sporting Goods Inc (NYSE:DKS), Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P), and Qorvo Inc (NASDAQ:QRVO)

Karee Venema

Oct 24, 2016 at 9:45 AM

QRVO
P
DKS

Analysts are weighing in on retail stock Dick's Sporting Goods Inc (NYSE:DKS), streaming music platform Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P), and semiconductor name and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) supplier Qorvo Inc (NASDAQ:QRVO). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes for DKS, P, and QRVO.

After DKS placed the winning bid for bankrupt Golfsmith last Friday, Cowen and Company raised its outlook on the stock to "outperform" from "market perform" and its price target to $64 from $58 -- in record-high territory. DKS stock has put in a stellar performance on the charts in 2016, rallying almost 64%, and today is up 2% at $57.85 -- within striking distance of its Sept. 22 all-time high of $61.94. Options traders, meanwhile, have initiated long calls over puts at a faster-than-usual clip in recent weeks. Dick's Sporting Goods Inc's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.76 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks in the 65th annual percentile.

Ahead of tomorrow evening's quarterly earnings and analyst day events, P saw its price target boosted to $22 from $19 at J.P. Morgan Securities, and to $16 from $15 at Stifel. As such, P is up 0.6% at $12.72, paring its year-to-date deficit to 5.1%. This upbeat brokerage note runs counter to recent critical attention Pandora Media Inc has received from analysts -- which pressured the shares to a dismal string of losses in last week's trading. Short sellers have also been skeptical, with nearly one-quarter of P's float sold short, or 10.1 times the stock's average pace of trading.

J.P. Morgan Securities initiated coverage on QRVO with an "overweight" rating and a $72 price target, territory not charted by the stock since July 2015. The shares of QRVO have jumped at the open, last seen up 3% at $56.34. Longer term, QRVO stock is up 10.7% in 2016, and while most analysts are optimistic toward the shares -- 63% maintain a "buy" or better rating -- short sellers have been growing increasingly pessimistic. Specifically, short interest surged 28.5% in the two most recent reporting periods, and now accounts for a healthy 7.6% of Qorvo Inc's available float.

Don't miss the market's next move! Sign up now for Schaeffer's Midday Market Check

Follow @Schaeffers

The $25k Day Trading Barrier is Gone. It's Time to Put Your Capital to Work.

For years, the PDT rule put a major roadblock in front of active traders. The barrier is no longer standing in the way.

But having more freedom doesn't mean every trade is worth taking.

With Dynamite Day Trading Signals, you'll receive up to 2 options trade alerts per week, each targeting 50%+ gains in a single session.

NO holding positions overnight.

NO waiting weeks for a trade to develop.

Just focused options trades designed to capitalize on opportunities as they emerge.

👉 Get Access to Dynamite Day Trading Signals