Amazon's Whole Foods deal could double the stock's value, says one bullish broker
Analysts are weighing in on social media stock Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), internet retailer Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), and digital payment company Paypal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on shares of FB, AMZN, and PYPL.
Facebook's Impressive Earnings Attract Price-Target Hikes
Facebook stock is up 5% to trade at $174.17, after last night's positive second-quarter earnings sparked a slew of price-target hikes from no fewer than 10 analysts. Among the most bullish brokerage firms are Deutsche Bank, Jefferies, Raymond James, Stifel, and Wedbush, all of which raised their FB price targets north of $200 -- led by Wedbush's $225 forecast, which implies expected upside of about 36% to last night's closing price, as well as a healthy premium to the stock's freshly tagged record high of $175.49.
If it seems surprising that FB stock hasn't garnered any upgrades amid this flurry of analyst affection, that's probably just because the stock's bullish bandwagon is already pretty packed. Of the 26 analysts following FB, 24 rate it a "buy" or better.
Analyst Says Amazon Stock Could Double From Whole Foods Deal
The stock is up 1.2% to trade at $1,065.80, but AMZN could double to $2,000 -- making it "the first trillion-dollar company" -- if its Whole Foods deal wins regulatory approval, analyst James Cakmak told CNBC. AMZN will release second-quarter earnings after today's close, and ahead of this event, the shares peaked at a new record of $1,074.75 this morning.
Options players are unsurprisingly upbeat toward the rapidly growing retail giant. AMZN's call/put volume ratio of 1.19 on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits in the 90th percentile of its annual range, hinting at a much healthier-than-usual appetite for bullish bets over bearish of late.
PayPal Scores a Slew of Post-Earnings Price-Target Hikes
PayPal stock stock is up 1.9% to trade at $59.89, after no fewer than 13 analysts dished out price-target hikes in the wake of the payments processor's second-quarter earnings results. BMO led the bullish pack by raising its price target to $70 from $60.
Up 51% year-to-date, PYPL has been on a steady climb since the beginning of February, and hit a new record high of $61.30 earlier. Of the 32 analysts following PYPL, more than two-thirds rate it a "buy" or better.