Northland Capital upgraded shares of Salesforce.com (CRM) Wednesday morning moving the stock to its best levels since mid-May.
Northland Capital’s analyst raised the stock to an Outperform from Market Perform rating. The firm also raised their target price of the stock to $400.
Wall Street analyst remain bullish on the outlook for Salesforce, despite the company’s disappointing earnings guidance in late May.
Salesforce’s management lowered their revenue and earnings per share guidance on the earnings conference call resulting in a 20% drop in the stock’s price.
In August, the company reaffirmed their earnings per share guidance for the November 27 earnings release while lowering revenue targets.
The adjustment of revenue targets reflects a slight slowdown in the company’s new business as several companies have paused new spending in anticipation of a slight recession.
Salesforce.com’s stock price recently moved above its 200-day moving average. That trendline is in a bullish trend.
In August, the stock’s 50-day moving average shifted into a bullish trend, suggesting that momentum has been turning more positive as the stock heads into what is normally a bullish seasonal period from October through December.
From a long-term perspective, Salesforce.com shares remain in a bull market trend as they remain above their 20-month moving average. The stock maintains a price target of $400.
Walmart (WMT) stock is trading a little soft on Tuesday showing losses of 1.9%.
The world’s largest retailer’s stock has been on a 17% run higher following the company’s earnings report released on August 14.
That breakneck rally has caused the shares to reach technically overbought readings of their RSI, suggesting that the stock could use a “healthy rest” or consolidation.
The August earnings report included a slight lowering of expectations for revenue and earnings per share by Walmart’s management. Investors have been able to overlook that adjustment to the company’s outlook after the company posted strong comp sales.
Investors have also been encouraged by Walmart’s product expansion.
The discount retailer is introducing new products that are attracting higher income shoppers to their stores. Furniture and other housing-related products with higher ticket prices (and margins) are connecting with shoppers. The move is viewed positively by investors as a challenge to Target (TGT) and other mid-income retailers.
Shares of Walmart are trading at new all-time highs after posting more than 50% gains in the last 12 months. That return compares to the broader retail sector ETF (XRT) returns of only 4% for the same period.
Investors should expect the stock to consolidate between the $75 and $80 price before making its next advance higher.
Shares of Walmart maintain a bullish outlook with a price target of $100.
Palantir (PLTR) stock is outpacing the Nasdaq 100 and other large cap stocks on Wednesday as shares trade 3.1% higher for the day.
The AI service company along with Salesforce.com and NVIDIA account for the majority of gains in the AI industry stocks today.
Shares of Palantir have been locked in a tight trading range for the last three trading weeks. The stock has remained between $36 and $37.50 for 13 of the last 14 trading sessions.
This range-bound trading should be considered a healthy consolidation as Palantir shares have made an aggressive 25% move higher during the month of September.
That rally was sparked by the September 6 announcement that Palantir, Dell (DELL), and Erie Indemnity (ERIE) were being added to the S&P 500.
Historically, stocks added to the S&P 500 and other major indices see a surge of buying as index mutual funds and ETFs must buy the new additions to reflect the index’s changes.
Palantir has turned in an impressive 12-month performance as shares are trading 136% higher than this time last year. The performance reflects the market’s shift to AI service companies as companies now look to incorporate AI into their operations.
Palantir’s consolidation at $37.50 should be seen as a rest ahead of the stock’s next short-term target of $40 and then $45.
The company’s next earnings calls is slated for November 5.
Shares of Palantir maintain a bullish outlook with a long-term price target of $50.
