Thursday's analyst calls: Meta earnings reaction, auto giant to rally more than 20%

(This is CNBC Pro's live coverage of Thursday's analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) Meta Platforms and General Motors topped Thursday's analyst calls. Several analysts lowered their price targets on the Facebook parent following its latest quarterly report. Meanwhile, Bernstein said GM can add to its already strong year-to-date gains. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 7:53 a.m.: Barclays downgrades Li, citing competitive concerns Barclays is moving into wait-and-see mode on Li Auto . Analyst Jiong Shao downgraded the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer to equal weight from overweight and slashed his price target by $14 to $25. That new target reflects upside of just 4.7% from Wednesday's close. “We consider it prudent at this point to step to the sidelines while closely monitoring how the competitive landscape shakes out in the coming months,” Shao wrote to clients. Shao pointed to disappointing initial sales of the Mega since its launch early last month as the “first operational misstep in an otherwise impressive execution track record.” As a result, the company lowered first-quarter delivery guidance. Now, he said growing competition from Huawei and BYD have “created a crack in LI's moat surrounding its EREV luxury family-oriented SUV market.” Those cracks have related to recent price cuts, the analyst said. Looking ahead, he said investors are now more cautious about how Li's upcoming battery electric vehicle launch will go later this year. U.S. shares of Li slid about 1.5% in Thursday premarket trading. The move comes amid a painful year, with stock diving more than 36% in 2024. — Alex Harring 7:53 a.m.: Bank of America downgrades Deckers Outdoor Deckers Outdoor shares are “poised to take a breather,” according to Bank of America. The bank downgraded shares of the Ugg parent to neutral from buy Wednesday. Analyst Christopher Nardone cited a softer-than-expected margin outlook that may lessen the pace of upward EPS revisions. “Potential margin headwinds include normalized UGG full price selling, elevated discounting at HOKA as the assortment gets deeper, freight cost reversal, and FX,” he wrote in a note to clients. Nardone also cut his price target to $860 from $875, suggesting 1% upside from Tuesday's close. Shares were down nearly 2% in premarket trading. — Michelle Fox 7:05 a.m.: Buy struggling Five Below stock, Wells Fargo says Traders can stand to gain from snapping up beat-down Five Below shares, according to Wells Fargo. Analyst Edward Kelly upgraded the discount retailer to overweight from equal weight and opened a $180 price target. Kelly's target implies the stock can rise 21.2% over Wednesday's close. “FIVE has had its share of issues and now seems poised to lower guidance against a choppy backdrop,” he said. “While far from ideal, we don't believe the story is broken and the risk/reward looks very good for those with some patience.” While it has to grapple with a tough retail backdrop and the industry-wide challenge of shrinkflation, Kelly said the retailer is still “an attractive growth name that should get back on track.” Though Five Below will likely need to lower expectations for 2024, he said the stock's situation should improve once that has been resolved. Kelly also noted that Five Below has outpaced discretionary comparable figures from most peers. Five Below advanced 1.1% in Thursday's premarket. That can mark a reprieve from a tough year, as shares have tumbled more than 30% in 2024. — Alex Harring 6:46 a.m.: Sherwin-Williams can rally more than 30% following slide, KeyBanc predicts With positive tailwinds and a recent sell-off in the rearview mirror, KeyBanc is optimistic on the path for Sherwin-Williams . Analyst Aleksey Yefremov upgraded the paint maker to overweight from sector weight. Yefremov's $400 price target indicates shares can jump 31.7% from Wednesday's closing price. “We acknowledge a somewhat less confident 1Q print and more questions about volume outlook for '24 on higher interest rates, but believe investors should focus on SHW's volume recovery story that we expect to unfold in '25-'26,” Yefremov wrote to clients. Yefremov said the upgrade allows investors to take advantage of the stock's outsized pullback of around 13% from the late March peak. For reference, shares have slipped more than 2.5% in 2024. SHW YTD mountain SHW year to date He also pointed to trends aiding a volume rebound. The analyst said Sherwin-Williams can continue winning share in the architectural paint category amid a shift from do-it-yourself to pro strategies. Sherwin-Williams can also reap benefits in the new home market due to the housing shortage, Yefremov said. Yefremov also pointed to positive cyclical indicators for the housing market, even as mortgage rates are high. He said the rest of 2024 should be more positive than the first quarter was. — Alex Harring 6:32 a.m.: Take-Two remains TD Cowen's best video game stock ahead of earnings Take-Two kept its status as TD Cowen's top video games pick heading into the sector's earnings period. Analyst Doug Creutz reiterated his buy rating and best-idea designation on the company behind Grand Theft Auto. Creutz's $173 price target reflects the potential for shares to climb 21.1% over Wednesday's close. Investors are “somewhat prepared” for the latest Grand Theft Auto launch to get pushed later than the March 2025 quarter, Creutz said. Because top-line guidance for the 2025 fiscal year is tied in part to its release, the analyst said a reiteration of that outlook could be good news for shareholders. “We tend to think a reiteration of that guide would result in a sharp increase in the share price, while a FY25 guide down would likely see a more muted negative response,” Creutz said. Despite his optimism, Creutz said that Take-Two management has something to prove following a pattern of cut guidance and uncertainty around the rest of the 2025 lineup. “We do think it is important for the company to start delivering on its financial promises as they have guided down either in-year or out-year numbers in six out of the last seven quarters,” he said. “We also note that there are still significant questions about what the remainder of the FY25 slate looks like; management had previously promised 'several' big titles in FY25, and that was before Judas was (probably) delayed out of Q4:F24.” Take-Two shares have slid more than 11% so far in 2024. Elsewhere in the space, Creutz kept his buy ratings on Playtika, Sony and Electronic Arts. Creutz also retained his sell call on Roblox. — Alex Harring 6:15 a.m.: Goldman turns bullish on TJX While Goldman Sachs is only “cautiously optimistic” on the apparel and accessories category, it sees TJX Companies as a potential winner given the focus on value. Analyst Brooke Roach upgraded the T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods parent to buy from neutral and increased her price target by $10 to $110. Roach's new target reflects upside of 15.4% from Wednesday's close. “We view TJX as a best-in-class operator and market share winner,” Roach wrote to clients. “Against a backdrop of a value-conscious and choiceful consumer, we expect relative traffic and comp outperformance to continue to support momentum within the company's core US businesses.” Roach noted that the company's improving relationship with brands can help margin expansion, which can then boost profit growth. She also said that TJX can be one of the few retailers this year amid choppy consumer trends to see “consistently healthy comp growth.” Shares ticked higher by about 1.5% in Thursday premarket trading. TJX's stock has underperformed the broader market in 2024, adding less than 2%. — Alex Harring 6:02 a.m.: JPMorgan moves to sidelines on Monster amid aluminum and customer troubles Monster Beverage shares could be in trouble into earnings as aluminum prices rise and the consumer faces pressure, JPMorgan said. Analyst Andrea Teixeira downgraded the energy drink maker to neutral from overweight and cut her price target by $7 to $59. Teixeira's new target level implies shares can add just 8.6%. Teixeira's call comes ahead of the drink producer's quarterly financial release early next month. While the stock has already fallen over the last month, she cited lackluster excitement around price increases, raised costs tied to aluminum and challenges for the lower-income customer as key reasons for caution. “Monster remains one of the best growth stories in our coverage universe with a strong track record of delivering an above-average earnings CAGR over the past 10 years,” she told clients. But, “we believe shares fairly reflect a more challenging outlook with softer U.S. performance amid a more stretched low income consumer and potential mitigation of margin recovery story given aluminum reflation.” She also pointed to increasing competition within the broader energy and caffeinated drinks category, even as the industry as a whole continues to expand. Monster shares slipped 1.5% before the bell on Thursday. The stock has dropped more than 8% in April, bringing its 2024 loss to greater than 5%. MNST YTD mountain MNST year to date — Alex Harring 5:47 a.m.: Ford should trade up following earnings report, Wells Fargo says Ford shares should take a leg up after earnings before interest and taxes came in ahead of expectations, according to Wells Fargo. The automaker saw adjusted EBIT decline about 18% year over year to $2.76 billion. That was still better than the firm's forecast of $2.5 billion, according to analyst Colin Langan, which can give the stock upward momentum. Ford also maintained its 2024 guidance for the measure of between $10 billion and $12 billion, but Langan said it should “lean” toward the higher end of the range. “We expect the stock to trade up on the Q1 beat & more optimistic FY24 guidance,” he said. Langan credited the Ford Pro business as driving the EBIT beat. Shares of the Michigan-based firm added 2.6% in premarket trading Thursday and are up more than 6% in 2024. Though Langan is optimistic about how the stock will perform Thursday, he has an underweight rating and price target of $10. That implies shares falling 22.8% from Wednesday's closing level. Elsewhere, the company surpassed expectations of analysts polled by LSEG for earnings per share, while automotive revenue missed the consensus forecast. — Alex Harring 5:38 a.m.: Wall Street reacts to Meta earnings Meta Platforms disappointed investors with its weak revenue guidance , sending shares down about 13% in premarket trading. Even amid the sell-off, many banks kept their bullish ratings on the Facebook parent. Here's what analysts at some of the largest investment firms thought: Eric Sheridan, Goldman Sachs (Buy, PT at $500) “With management referencing past investment/product cycles such as Stories and Reels … we do expect the shares to remain volatile in the coming quarters (especially so if increased investment is met with downward revenue revisions from new levels). That said, we'd note that historically management has been able to effectively navigate such investment cycles and execute to position the platform for long-term success around product/computing shifts.” Brian Nowak, Morgan Stanley (Overweight, PT at $550): “META intends to continue to invest … in order to drive more engagement and monetization, but we are buyers of META on weakness, with it currently trading at 18X our new '25 FCF (5.5% yield) in after hours. It also implies 17X '25 earnings (a 15% discount to the 5yr FY2 average).” Doug Anmuth, JPMorgan (Overweight, PT down to $480 from $535): “We are encouraged that Meta's success w/Llama 3 & Meta AI has increased management's confidence in leading in AI, & we know that building out new products takes time, but comparisons to the scaling periods of Reels, Stories, & Feed into mobile will concern many investors, even as we can see those long-term payoffs. … Despite the heavy investments, we still project double-digit revenue & EPS growth in '25 & '26, & Meta has a strong track record of driving returns on increased spending.” Ronald Josey, Citi (Buy rating, PT down to $550 from $590): “The key debate coming out of earnings is likely to be around the size and scale of Meta's multi-year GenAI investment cycle. But unlike previous cycles (Mobile, Stories, Reels), we believe its GenAI investments come from a position of strength whereby Meta is a leader. More NT, the debate likely revolves around the pace of revenue deceleration given 2Q guidance and rising Capex spend. But … we believe Meta continues to have multiple tailwinds, including from Llama 3, Meta AI and Business AI (Agents).” — Alex Harring 5:38 a.m.: Bernstein initiates GM as outperform General Motors' 2024 gains are only the beginning of a strong period for the automotive giant, according to Bernstein. Analysts Daniel Roeska initiated GM with an outperform rating. His price target of $55 implies upside of 22% over the next 12 months. Roeska noted that GM is “finding its mojo again,” adding: “The company is pivoting from lofty long-term targets back to more tangible shareholder returns.” “We expect 2024's performance to push the stock higher, while management has four distinct opportunities to realize more value still,” the analyst said. “We are encouraged by stronger cash flows and expect the company to return > $4.5b to shareholders per year.” The note came after General Motors posted earlier this week first-quarter earnings that beat analyst expectations. The company also raised its 2024 guidance . GM shares are up more than 25% year to date. GM YTD mountain GM year to date — Fred Imbert