Ready or not, it has happened. The financial markets were not counting on a US/China trade deal being reached over the weekend. There may be very few details other than the last 10% staying on the table, but the negotiators now have another 90 days or so to figure out what they really want to settle on. The S&P 500 rose over 3.2% to $5,844.19 and the Dow rose by 1,160 points (2.8%) to 42,410.10. And the tech-dominated NASDAQ rose an even sharper 4.35% to 18,708.34.
Investors have just witnessed one of the greatest recoveries from early April into May. What’s amazing is that even after a 19% recovery since April’s plunge-depth lows is that the S&P 500 is still down less than 1% year-to-date. It’s been a wild year about tariffs, trade wars and economic risks of a recession.
Oggonomics tracks the daily flow of Wall Street analyst research reports to find the hidden nuggets and new ideas that might have otherwise been missed. The trend since March has been for brokerage firms to maintain mostly positive ratings but with severe price target cuts now that expectations for the 2025 economy have come down so much.
And while there are some formal analyst downgrades, it is still a challenge to find bottom-fishing analyst upgrades telling investors it’s a good time to jump in. There are still a few being issued each day where positive ratings are coming with significant price target increases. They just are not very common.
Oggonomics would always remind its readers that no analyst report should ever be the sole basis to buy or sell a stock. Analysts can be wrong like the rest of us. And sometimes the fundamentals can change in the blink of an eye.
These are the new positive ratings and other analyst calls from Monday, May 12, 2025 that included significant price target hikes projecting more upside ahead. A couple of these calls may already need to be refreshed based on the US/China trade deal news. Please read the disclaimer at the end of this report.
Affirm Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: AFRM) was riding high with a 14% gain to $53.00 on Monday after news that World Market partnered with the BNPL leader to offer a flexible payment option in-store and online. Barclays reiterated its Overweight rating and raised its target to $53 from $45. Goldman Sachs reiterated its Buy rating and raised its target to $58 from 445. The reference price in the analyst reports was $46.41 for Friday’s close so the target hikes may look a tad weak because of the signed pact.
Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) is finally passed its controversies and is wide enough around the globe that tariffs may not matter all that much. BUD’s rating was upgraded to Buy from Neutral and its price target was raised to $88 from $71.
Cigna Group (NYSE: CI) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $405 from $385 at Truist Securities. Cigna was down 5.5% at $315.07 on Monday.
Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $350 from $320 at Citigroup. Cummins closed at $306.71 on Friday and was up over 7% at $330.40 in Monday’s trading. Is Maintained at Buy by Citigroup
DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ: DKNG) was reiterated as Positive and its price target was raised to $52 from $42 at Susquehanna. That said, four firms cut the target: Barclays (Overweight) target to $48 from $50; Guggenheim (Buy) target to $60 from $61; Macquarie (Outperform) target to $53 from $55; Mizuho (Outperform) target to $58 from $59.
Embraer S.A. (NYSE: ERJ) was given a positive call at Goldman Sachs as the firm upgraded the Brazilian jet maker to Buy from Hold with a price target hike to $60 from $54. Embraer closed down 0.3% at $48.05 on Monday.
Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE: EMR) was an industrial winner that was reiterated as Buy and its target was raised to $133 from $127 (versus $112.55 prior close) at Citigroup. Emerson Electric is down from a 52-week high of $134.85 and its stock rose 6.1% to $119.41 on Monday.
Grindr Inc. (NYSE: GRND) barely budged on Monday, likely because its main focus won’t change with tariffs or without. Goldman Sachs thinks they found their groove, reiterating its Buy rating and raising its price target to $26 from $20. Grindr closed down 1-cent at $23.99 but this is up from $18 just a month ago.
Upgrading those large international hotel chains… Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HLT) was given an upgrade to Buy from Hold and its target was raised to $296 from $228 (versus $243.01 prior close) at Jefferies. Hilton has enough high-end properties around the world that it is expected to be able to weather most economic turbulence. Jefferies also raised Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE: MAR) to Buy from Hold and raised its target to $303 from $226 (versus $257.97 prior close) in a similar report. Hilton was up 3.9% at $252.52 and Marriott was up 5.4% at $271.96 by Monday’s close.
Laboratory Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LH) was reiterated as Buy and its target was raised to $290 from $274 at Truist Securities in a catch-up adjustment call. LabCorp closed up 2.15 at $250.94 on Monday.
PDD Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PDD) was raised to Buy from Neutral and its price target was raised to $165 from $127 at Citigroup, a rapid reversal from Citi’s price target cut to $127 from $150 just on April 28. This is the former Pinduoduo and is the parent of China’s Temu online retailer. This company has a lot of risk tied to full blown tariffs, so it is understandable why it rose so much. PDD closed up 6.1% at $116.38 on Monday and it has a 52-week range of $87.11 to $164.69.
Rivian Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIVN) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $18 from $16 at Stifel. Rivian closed up 2.6% at $14.64 on Monday. Rivian shares fell last week after earnings included a forecast of lower 2025 car production. Stifel’s higher target cited solid progress toward the EV-maker’s milestones that include bringing its lower-priced EV to market.
Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $190 from $175 at Truist Securities. Tenet’s shares closed up 3.8% at $154.57 and its 52-week range is $109.82 to $171.20. Apparently, owning and operating hospitals and health care facilities are just not trade-sensitive.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (NYSE: TEVA) is now a drug winner with generics that, despite recovering from $13 to $17, it is still down enough from January’s $22 level that JPMorgan thinks it represents an attractive point of entry for new investors. Teva was raised to Overweight from Neutral and its target was raised to $23 from $21 in the JPMorgan call.
Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W) is a huge tariff winner considering that much of its home furnishings, accessories and other items for the home are made overseas. The independent research firm Argus raised its rating to Buy from Hold with a $40 price target. This stock surged 20% to close at $39.56, but Argus was using a $32.79 reference price on its upgrade/ The stock is down from a 52-week high of $76.18.
All price targets and formal ratings above have been assigned to each firm issuing their reports. Oggonomics does not issue any formal ratings and price targets of its own on these stocks. Investing involves significant risks, and no analyst reports, even those with very strong conviction, ever come with any guarantees of profits. These research reports also never issue any money-back guarantees in case you lose money.
