The market is up, then it’s down, and then up again. It’s an endless cycle that has surprisingly kept rising. One of the most important aspects of a whether a company is a good stock is its earnings power. Each and every earnings season tends to set the tone for the coming quarter. On top of the actual earnings reports, investors and traders also get a feel for guidance about what companies are seeing for the next 3 months to 6 months out.

So what happens when multiple analysts start raising expectations for ratings and for price targets on certain stocks ahead of their earnings?

Tactical Bulls has tracked 12 stocks that are performing quite well and where Wall Street analysts keep issuing price target upgrades right ahead of earnings season. Some of the analysts are even upgrading their formal ratings along with price target hikes. It’s almost as if they just cannot get enough of these stocks.

Many investors and traders look at the daily flow of analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations as one of the available tools to determine whether they should buy, sell, hold or just wait to decide. And many investors are looking how to be best positioned ahead of the election (less than a month now!) and how to position ahead of 2025. This is where it’s time to evaluate stocks that are getting multiple analyst upgrades and/or price target hikes ahead of their earnings.

Any investor and any analyst can make upgrades and downgrades right after earnings and key events. In fact, that’s probably 80% of the research universe’s job. But when analysts are getting out in front of earnings or ahead of key news, that’s when the tactical nature of investing becomes much more interesting.

Tactical Bulls always reminds investors and its readers that no single analyst report should ever be the sole basis to buy or sell a stock. That decision to buy or sell, or hold or short sell, is up to each investor and the decision should be made with a financial advisor. That being said, many investors gravitate toward the companies that are being upgraded ahead of earnings. It sometimes feels like it is Wall Street’s effort of “showing its hand” in a poker game.

APOLLO’S GROWTH RUNWAY FOR YEARS

Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE: APO) has been on a tear since early September and after it took out the old $125 resistance level from the summer. Shares were last seen up at $137 and it is up 48% YTD. Apollo gave its first multi-year plan and investors are very excited about its alternative asset management, private equity and perhaps even traditional asset management growth plans in the coming years. Here are the target hikes and upgrades that have been seen in October alone:

• Morgan Stanley (Equal-Weight) target to $137 from $111 (10/10
• Wells Fargo (Overweight) target to $149 from $148 (10/9) target also raised from $132 (10/2)
• Barclays (Overweight) target to $148 from $128 (10/7)
• Goldman Sachs (Buy) target to $135 from $128 (10/3)
• TD Cowen (Buy) target to $162 from $135 (10/2)
• BMO (Outperform) target to $138 from $123 (10/2)
• JPMorgan (Overweight) target to $143 from $129 (10/2)
• Evercore ISI (Outperform) target to $150 from $127 (10/2)

GENERAL ELECTRIC NOW THREE, BUT TWO BIG WINNERS

The old General Electric conglomerate has been broken up. Those who feared unlocking the value would hurt its safety have regretted those fears. The analyst community has been jumping on the bandwagon for both GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) and GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE: GEV). Both stocks have surged in 2024. GE Aerospace was up about 87% YTD and GE Vernova was last seen up about 100% since its debut as its own operation earlier in 2024.

GE Aerospace shares were last seen trading at $191 and here are the analyst calls seen on it:

• Citi (Buy) target to $216 from $198 (10/10)
• Deutsche Bank (Buy) target to $235 from $212 (10/3)
• Barclays (Overweight) target to $230 from $200 (9/30)
• Bernstein started as Outperform and $201 target (9/10)

GE Vernova Inc. shares were last seen trading around $269. While HSBC did downgraded GEV on 10/4 to Hold from Buy, the firm still raised its target up to $255 from $240 in that call. Here are the recent analyst calls seen on it:

• Goldman Sachs (Buy) target to $308 from $220 (10/10)
• JPMorgan (Overweight) target to $285 from $240 (10/9)
• Evercore ISI (Outperform) target to $300 from $285 (10/3)
• Barclays (Overweight) target to $300 from $250 (10/2)
• Truist Securities started as Buy and $300 target (9/26)
• Guggenheim started as Buy and $300 target (9/24)
• Jefferies (buy) target to $293 from $261 (9/20)

IBM — IS BIG BLUE REALLY BACK?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) had been rangebound for years, but in mid-2023 it began its breakout. Now its stock is up to $230 and its shares are up 41% YTD. Apparently the Watson AI play is working and adding more than most skeptics had guessed. That’s not even counting nearly a 3% dividend yield (or over a 4% yield if you have owned any time since before the end of 2023. Analysts are now chasing IBM expectations higher and higher ahead of earnings season:

• RBC (Outperform) target to $250 from $211 (10/10)
• BofA (Buy) target to $250 from $209 (10/9)
• Goldman Sachs (Buy) target to $250 from $220 (9/30)
• Evercore ISI (Outperform) target to $240 from $215 (9/11)

FACEBOOK, I MEAN META SIR

Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) has survived its political scrutiny and social backlash over and over. It truly leads social media more than other platforms and has enough other tools that go well beyond just Facebook. Even with shares up 65% YTD analysts are calling for more upside ahead. Scotiabank was the one firm that has said enough by starting coverage as Sector Perform with a $585 price target. That is right where Facebook was on last look. Now here are the other analysts jumping up targets after its investor-day presentations and ahead of earnings:

• Truist (Buy) target to $650 from $570 (10/10)
• Raymond James (Strong Buy) target to $650 from $600 (10/10)
• Cantor Fitzgerald (Overweight) target to $670 from $660 (10/9)
• KeyBanc (Overweight) target to $655 from $560 (10/9)
• BMO (Market Perform) target to $525 from $475 (10/9)
• UBS (Buy) target to $690 from $635 (10/7)
• Guggenheim (Buy) target to $665 from $600 (10/7)
• Wells Fargo (Overweight) target to $652 from $647 (10/2)
• Pivotal Research started as Buy with $780 price target (10/1)

And if you go back to September and right before, there are nearly an equal number of price target hikes from the likes of Monnes Crespi Hardt, Rosenblatt, BofA, Wedbush, JMP, JPMorgan, Baird, Citi and so on.

THE MIGHTY NETFLIX STREAMING WINNER GALORE!

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) has beaten every streaming platform and kept its subscribers. It even thrived after cracking down on password sharing by increasing users on an account for a higher price. Its shares recently peaked at $730 before pulling back 1% and its stock is up 49% YTD. Barclays did downgraded Netflix to Underweight from Equal Weight but the $550 price target was kept in place on 10/7. Here are many analysts jumped on the bandwagon with higher target prices or strong price targets:

• Guggenheim (Buy) target to $810 from $735 (10/11)
• Oppenheimer (Outperform) target to $775 from $725 (10/10)
• Morgan Stanley (Overweight) target to $820 from $780 (10/10)
• Deutsche Bank (Hold) target to $650 from $590 (10/9)
• JPMorgan (Overweight) reiterated $750 target) (10/8)
• TD Cowen (Buy) target to $820 from $775 (10/7)
• Piper Sandler raised to Overweight and $800 target (from Neutral, $650) (10/7)
• KeyBanc (Overweight) target to $760 from $735 (10/1)
• Pivotal Research (Buy) target to $900 from $800 (8/30)

CRUISE LINES TRUCKING — A 3-IN-1 UPGRADE BREAKOUT CYCLE

Cruise liners are winning and the ships are full and discounting is low as customers have continued to spend for experiences and services rather than for endless goods. Most cruise lines are unveiling new plans, with incentives and strong pricing because bookings are strong heading into 2025. This week the “tactical” side of the trade came up from research price/rating upgrades and the valuation multiples (P/E) are incredibly low. This represented a 3-in-1 cycle, with the fresh analyst ratings and price target changes listed in each.

Norwegian Cruise Lines

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) was at $195 at the end of the week and looking like a break-out chart to 52-week highs. RCL was up 51% YTDD and up almost 120% from a year ago. Analysts are still raising targets as follows:

• Stifel (Buy) target to $230 from $200 (10/11)
• Citi target to $253 from $204 (10/9)
• Truist (Buy) target to $204 from $175 (9/26)
• JPMorgan (Overweight) target to $213 from $210 (9/16)

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NCLH) was at $23 at the end of the week, up over 16% YTD and up over 49% versus a year ago. Analysts are still raising targets into what looks like a chart breakout for new 52-week highs. Here are the fresh calls.

• Citi raised to Buy from Neutral and target to $30 from $20 (10/9)
• Stifel (Buy) target top $29 from $27 (10/4)
• Truist Buy target to $25 from $21 (9/26)
• JPMorgan (Neutral) target to $25 from $23 (9/16)

Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) was trading at $20.40 at the end of the week, also on what looks like a chart breakout to 52-week highs. Carnival was last seen up 10% YTD and up over 60% versus a year ago. Analysts are still raising targets, as follows:

• Citi (Buy) target to $28 from $25 (10/9)
• Tigress (Buy) target to $28 from $25 (10/7)
• Macquarie (Outperform) target to $26 from $25 (10/3)
• Barclays (Overweight) target to $26 from $25 (10/1)
• Mizuho (Outperform) target to $26 from $25 (10/1)

SHARKNINJA MAY BECOME YOUR ONLY APPLIANCE/UTILITY TOOL

SharkNinja Inc. (NYSE: SN) is proving to be a stock that just is not pulling back to let you in at a “fair price” considering it is up 110% YTD and up 150% from a year ago. The company just keeps adding new items and customers keep going to them, and the size and sleek designs for the new format of smaller homes is winning out. The WSJ even gave an article showing that it basically wants to come for every appliance and kitchen tool in your home. Now its shares are up at $107 and analysts just won’t stop hiking their targets.

• Guggenheim (Buy) target to $120 from $100 (10/7)
• Canaccord Genuity (Buy) target to $126 from $105 (10/2)
• Oppenheimer started as Outperform with $120 target (10/01)
• BofA (Buy) target to $130 from $120 (10/1)
• JPMorgan (Overweight) target to $128 from $97 (9/30)

WALMART — SIZE DOES MATTER

Walmart, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) has always managed to post growth over time, but now Walmart is winning at the expense of other retailers because every store has almost anything a shopper might need. Walmart even said it is taking in higher-end customers as well. It is even winning on taking other online sellers into its ecommerce platform. Does it seem possible that the world’s largest retailer is up 50% YTD? AT $79 now, here are the top analyst calls seen in the last two to three weeks:

• Telsey (Outperform) target to $92 from $82 (10/8)
• RW Baird (Outperform) target to $90 from $82 (9/30)
• Citi (Buy) target to $98 from $75 (9/27)
• Truist (Buy) target to $89 from $76 (9/24)
• Melius Research started as Buy with $95 target (9/23)
• Wells Fargo (Overweight) target to $88 from $81 (9/23)

ZETA – AI MEETS NEW ADVERTISING LEADER

Zeta Global Holdings Corp. (NYSE: ZETA) is one of the newer online advertising companies. On top of potentially getting more grasp of the ad market if there is ever a Google breakup, Zeta’s growth driver is an increasing AI investment effort across all software categories. That includes advertising. Any tactical investor better consider that this stock has already doubled since June. So any disappointment at all would be a time when investors should expect a serious pullback. Zeta already had its insider and external stock offering in early September. It will release earnings on November 11. Here are the calls that have been seen in recent weeks:

• DA Davidson (Buy) target to $39 from $35 (10/9)
• Roth MKM (Buy) target to $44 from $33 (10/1)
• B. Riley (Buy) target to $37 from $30 (9/30)
• Needham (Buy) target to $36 from $33 (9/30)
• Craig-Hallum (Buy) target to $37 from $35 (9/27)
• Truist (Buy) target to $35 from $30 (9/27)
• RBC (Outperform) target to $34 from $29 (9/27)
• BofA (Buy) target to $36 from $30 (9/26)