Analyst Downgrades: Finish Line Inc, Applied Materials, Inc., and JAKKS Pacific, Inc.

Analysts downwardly revised their ratings and price targets on Finish Line Inc (FINL), Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT), and JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (JAKK)

Dec 19, 2016 at 9:55 AM

Analysts are weighing in on retail interest Finish Line Inc (NASDAQ:FINL), semiconductor stock Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT), and toymaker JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ:JAKK). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on FINL, AMAT, and JAKK.

FINL received a downgrade to "neutral" from Citigroup, as well as a price-target cut to $20 from $22 at Cowen and Company, ahead of its quarterly earnings report, due before the open this Wednesday. The stock is off 0.6% at $22.31 this morning, paring its year-to-date lead to 23.4%. Short sellers are certainly hoping for a post-earnings move to the downside, as these bearish bets have climbed by more than 37% during the two most recent reporting periods. In fact, 27.2% of Finish Line Inc's available float is now sold short, accounting for two full weeks' worth of trading, at the stock's typical daily volumes.
Goldman Sachs cut its rating on AMAT to "neutral" from "buy," but the shares are nonetheless up 0.5% at $32.69. The stock hit a fresh 16-year high of $33.40 on Friday, and sits on a 75% lead for 2016, attempting to hold on to a key technical level. Meanwhile, options traders continue to pick up bullish bets on Applied Materials Inc. The equity's 10-week call/put volume ratio of 5.38 across the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks in the high 84th percentile of its 12-month range.

JAKK is getting pounded this morning, down 22.7% at $5.45, and fresh off a new three-year low of $4.85, after the company downwardly revised its full-year outlook, showing a 7% drop in net sales. The news led Piper Jaffray and BMO to lower their ratings on the stock to "neutral" and "market perform," respectively, while at least four brokerage firms have cut their price targets on JAKKS Pacific, Inc. With today's drop, the stock has widened its 2016 deficit to more than 31%. JAKK hasn't been a huge favorite with analysts in general -- three out of four covering brokerage firms rate the stock a lukewarm "hold," though none recommend selling the shares at the present.

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