Analyst Upgrades: Nutanix Inc, NVIDIA Corporation, and Swift Transportation Co

Analysts are weighing in on cloud concern Nutanix Inc (NASDAQ:NTNX), chipmaker NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), and freight stock Swift Transportation Co (NYSE:SWFT). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes for NTNX, NVDA, and SWFT.

• NTNX, which went public late last month, is basking in the glow of positive analyst attention. No fewer than 12 brokerage firms initiated coverage on the stock, the majority of which handed out the equivalent of a "buy" opinion. Ahead of the bell, shares of Nutanix Inc are up 1.1%, after settling at $29.77 Monday -- well above the $16 initial public offering (IPO) price. Meanwhile, traders at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) have bought to open 4.74 NTNX calls for every put in the last two weeks.

• B. Riley raised its price target on NVDA to $85 from $73, expecting higher highs from the technical outperformer. Yesterday, in fact, the stock hit a record best of $70.79 before settling at $70.71. NVIDIA Corporation could benefit further if short sellers begin to cover their likely underwater positions. Short interest jumped 20% during the past two reporting periods to over 64 million shares, or 12.5% of the stock's available float. At NVDA's average trading levels, it would take nearly seven sessions to buy back those bets.

• SWFT's earnings report is being cheered on Wall Street, with UBS upgrading its rating to "buy" from "neutral." Plus, the brokerage firm -- along with Stifel -- lifted its price target to $24, in annual-high territory. It's been a great year for Swift Transportation Co, as the shares have surged nearly 47% to trade at $20.28. Yet, options traders remain incredibly put-skewed toward the stock. SWFT's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.20 ranks in the high 98th percentile of its annual range. Bears could get spooked today, with the shares pointed nearly 7% higher ahead of the open.

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