Eli Lilly stock is lower after a downgrade and poor lung cancer drug results
Analysts are weighing in on cybersecurity name Qualys Inc (NASDAQ:QLYS), pharmaceutical stock Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY), and Apple supplier Jabil Inc (NYSE:JBL). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on shares of QLYS, LLY, and JBL.
Morgan Stanley Hits Qualys Stock With Downgrade
Qualys was downgraded at Morgan Stanley to "equal weight" from "overweight," with the brokerage firm explaining sector peers Palo Alto Networks (PANW) and Symantec (SYMC) offer a better risk/reward. In reaction, QLYS stock is down 4.4% to trade at $50.85, retreating from yesterday's two-year high of $54.15 and falling below their recently supportive 20-day moving average for the first time since an early August bull gap.
Longer term, the equity has tacked on roughly 61% year-to-date. Nevertheless, analysts are skeptical toward QLYS. At last night's close, eight of the 13 brokerages covering the equity rated it a tepid "hold."
First a Downgrade, Then a Failed Lung Cancer Drug Study for LLY
It's been a rough few days for Eli Lilly, which received a downgrade last night at Credit Suisse to "neutral" from "outperform." Now today, the pharmaceutical name reported that its drug Verzenio failed its late-stage study in patients with non-small cell lung cancer.
As a result, LLY stock is currently down 1.3% to trade at $85.95, after touching a two-year high of $89.01 last Thursday. However, LLY stock closed last night in overbought territory, as evidenced by its 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 70, meaning a short-term pullback may have been in the cards.
Jabil Stock Downgraded at Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs downgraded Jabil stock today to "sell" from "neutral," while also reducing its price target $2 to $26, citing "overly optimistic Street expectations." The brokerage firm also said there could be "downside risk to [earnings] estimates if iPhone X orders are not stronger."
Against this backdrop, Jabil stock is down 3% to trade at $28.61, but is finding a foothold atop its 200-day moving average -- a trendline contained a late-September retreat. Plus, JBL remains up nearly 21% year-to-date.
In spite of this longer-term outperformance, options traders at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) have had a healthier-than-usual appetite for puts over calls lately. JBL stock sports a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 2.05 -- 3 percentage points away from a 52-week high.