Monday’s analyst calls: Oil giant to surge more than 35%, Planet Fitness a top pick

Posted By: EN Todayon: August 26, 2024In: General Energy News, Oil & Gas News

(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Monday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) A gym stock and an oil giant were among the stocks being talked about by analysts on Monday. Baird named Planet Fitness a top pick , highlighting its attractive valuation. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley raised its rating on Petrobras , calling for strong gains ahead. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. Baird deems Planet Fitness a ‘bullish fresh pick’ Baird has reason for optimism on Planet Fitness . Analyst Jonathan Komp on Monday added a “bullish fresh pick” designation through year-end on the gym chain’s stock, while maintaining his outperform rating. Komp’s $92 price target implies 13.5% upside from where the stock concluded last week. “We are highlighting PLNT as an attractive idea for a slowing growth environment,” Komp wrote to clients. “New leadership has addressed unit economic challenges, and we see multiple potential drivers – especially better marketing – lining up for 2025,” he added. “PLNT’s strong consumer value proposition and high-margin franchise model should prove resilient in a challenging macro backdrop, and lower interest rates and building cost relief could spur investor optimism in unit growth reaccelerating after 2024E.” Komp noted that the stock is still lagging the S & P 500 despite rising from lows seen earlier this year and an improving fundamental setup for 2025. He said shares look “attractive” at forward enterprise value to EBITDA multiple of 17.2, which Komp said is about a 6% discount compared with other peers in the franchisee business. Shares are up slightly over 11% in 2024. PLNT YTD mountain PLNT in 2024 — Alex Harring Morgan Stanley upgrades Petrobras A strong period is ahead for Petrobras after struggling in 2024, according to Morgan Stanley. Analyst Bruno Montanari upgraded the Brazilian oil giant to overweight from equal weight. His price target of $20, up from $18, implies upside of 38.9% from Friday’s close. Petrobras recently underwent major executive changes, including the appointment of a new CEO in June, putting pressure on the stock. Year to date, shares are down nearly 10%. PBR YTD mountain PBR in 2024 But, with “management changes now behind, we believe the noise level will gradually diminish, which could remove some of the volatility component,” Montanari wrote. “The message of the new CEO and CFO in recent conference calls and meetings leads us to believe in strategy continuity, with the coexistence of a responsible increase in investments and dividend distribution, as long as there is spare cash availability.” U.S.-listed shares were up 2% in the premarket following the upgrade. — Fred Imbert