(That is CNBC Professional’s dwell protection of Thursday’s analyst calls and Wall Avenue chatter. Please refresh each 20-Half-hour to view the most recent posts.) A quick-casual meals chain and a online game maker have been among the many shares being talked about by analysts on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lowered its score on Cava to equal weight, citing valuation issues. In the meantime, Redburn Atlantic initiated Take-Two Interactive with a purchase score. Try the most recent calls and chatter under. All instances ET. 6:54 a.m.: CrowdStrike earnings ‘higher than feared,’ analysts say Regardless of CrowdStrike’s world IT outage in July, the corporate managed to publish a top- and bottom-line beat within the second quarter, making Wall Avenue analysts assured within the inventory. UBS analyst Roger Boyd, who holds a purchase score on shares, elevated his worth goal by $10 to $330 in a analysis notice on Thursday. The brand new goal implies 24.9% upside potential from Wednesday’s shut. Regardless of ongoing uncertainty and the corporate’s lowered ahead income steering, Boyd stated second-quarter outcomes have been “higher than feared.” CrowdStrike managed to shut “a number of spectacular offers” even after the IT outage, Boyd added. Morgan Stanley’s Hamza Fodderwala was additionally impressed with CrowdStrike’s second-quarter earnings report, saying that the corporate was in a position to rise “from the ashes.” The corporate’s internet new annualized recurring income additionally grew greater than consensus expectations, he added. “The falcon can also be a phoenix,” Fodderwala stated in a notice. “Backside line, with robust Q2 outcomes and derisked 2H outlook, the main target now shifts to the tempo of topline restoration over the subsequent 12-18 months.” Fodderwala is trying towards the corporate’s upcoming analyst day on Sept. 18 and its Fal.Con convention as potential catalysts for upward motion. He holds an obese score and $325 worth goal on shares. Financial institution of America additionally reiterated its purchase score following the outcomes. Analyst Tal Liani is assured within the firm’s fundamentals, highlighting its cloud safety and endpoint safety segments.CrowdStrike is “taking the appropriate steps to de-risk Avenue estimates,” Liani stated. He holds a $365 worth goal on the inventory. Shares slipped greater than 1% Thursday morning. — Hakyung Kim 6:05 a.m.: Bernstein turns into bullish on Marriott Buyers can buy into the current dip in Marriott shares, based on Bernstein. The agency upgraded shares to outperform from market carry out in a notice. It additionally notched up its worth goal on shares to $262 from $247, indicating 15.1% upside from Thursday’s shut. Marriott shares have declined 9% up to now six months and practically 14% 12 months so far amid issues of a slowdown in client spending. MAR 6M mountain MAR in previous six months “Marriott has opened up a report low cost to Hilton regardless of an identical steering on NUG+RevPAR and within the subsequent 12m we anticipate materials progress on tech and midscale,” analyst Richard Clarke wrote. Clarke highlighted Marriott’s higher-end client and worldwide publicity. “A great time to purchase a top quality title at a reduction,” Clarke added. — Hakyung Kim 5:44 a.m.: Morgan Stanley downgrades Cava Morgan Stanley is stepping to the sidelines on Cava after shares have greater than doubled in 2024. Analyst Brian Harbour lowered his score on the inventory to equal weight from obese. Though he raised his worth goal on the inventory to $110 from $90, the brand new worth goal continues to be greater than 7% decrease than the place shares closed on Wednesday. The downgrade just isn’t from a insecurity in Cava, however a “valuation name,” per Harbour. “To be clear, we stay followers of the corporate and assume the basic narrative and KPIs proceed to skew constructive, with a very good chance of upward estimate revisions over the subsequent 12 months, if to not the identical diploma as over the previous 12,” Harbour wrote in a notice. “However even marking our estimates above consensus right here, publish 2Q earnings, and sticking to our framework, we do not have upside to our base case, and see extra balanced risk-reward skew, so that is now not a contemporary cash purchase for us, as could be recommended by an OW score,” he added. Nonetheless, the analyst believes Cava shares are a promising maintain for longer-term buyers. Shares slipped greater than 3% Thursday earlier than the bell. CAVA YTD mountain CAVA YTD — Hakyung Kim 5:44 a.m.: Redburn Atlantic initiates Take-Two Interactive as a purchase Take-Two Interactive is certain to outperform going ahead, based on Redburn Atlantic. Analyst Hamilton Faber initiated protection of the online game maker with a purchase score. His worth goal of $194 implies upside of twenty-two% from Wednesday’s shut. “Take-Two is roughly a 12 months away from releasing Grand Theft Auto VI, the subsequent iteration in what’s by far the world’s most profitable crime online game franchise, and in a style the place the corporate dominates,” Faber stated. “To say the launch might be transformational is an understatement. We see a tripling of working earnings over the subsequent couple of years.” “Grand Theft Auto VI” is predicted to be launched in 2025 after years of delay. Take-Two shares have fallen 1% this 12 months, lagging the broader market. TTWO YTD mountain TTWO 12 months so far — Fred Imbert
