Wall Street analysts reset ratings across tech, consumer and biotech stocks

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Wall street analyst ratings reset

Highlights

Bernstein and Oppenheimer downgrade Nvidia to market perform and perform, citing CEO uncertainty and increased risk after reports of Jensen Huang’s alleged imminent departure.
Kimbell Electronics, Dorman Products, and Pattern Group receive new buy or overweight initiations, with Barclays projecting Dorman's annual revenue growth of 4-5% or more through 2028.
Deutsche Bank raises Ulta's price target to $723 from $671 on sales momentum, while Piper Sandler downgrades General Mills to neutral, flagging dividend-risk amid operational pressure.

Thursday rating changes reshape sector outlook

As reported by CNBC, Thursday’s biggest analyst calls span reiterations, upgrades, downgrades and initiations, with several firms highlighting management risk, valuation, operating pressure and shifting industry demand.

Bernstein reiterates Apple as outperform, saying the stock’s valuation remains reasonable given customer loyalty, earnings durability, growth, free cash flow generation and shareholder returns. Piper Sandler downgrades General Mills to neutral from overweight, citing operating pressures and saying it now sees risk to the company’s dividend level.

Barclays upgrades Reliance to overweight from equal weight, pointing to higher steel prices and stronger 2027 and 2028 estimates on tighter supply, better volumes and margins. Bank of America downgrades Victoria’s Secret to neutral from buy, saying limited earnings-per-share upside remains after the stock’s year-to-date gains and the brand turnaround thesis largely plays out.

Several calls focus on Nvidia and the read-through for adjacent chipmakers. Oppenheimer downgrades Nvidia to perform from outperform and removes its price target following reports by The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times about CEO Jensen Huang’s imminent departure amid personal allegations; Bernstein also cuts Nvidia to market perform from outperform, saying it prefers to stay on the sidelines as uncertainty deepens.

William Blair upgrades Advanced Micro Devices to outperform from market perform, saying AMD can benefit from the turmoil at Nvidia and may gain from custom programs despite ongoing ASIC competition risks. Oppenheimer also reiterates SpaceX as outperform, arguing the company remains a major threat to large telecom incumbents as its terrestrial ambitions become clearer through its Qualcomm partnership.

Healthcare, industrial and consumer names draw selective support

Outside large-cap technology, analysts turn more positive on several biotech and industrial companies. KeyBanc upgrades Maravai Lifesciences to overweight from sector weight, saying the company emerges from a difficult policy backdrop for mRNA technology with new management and roughly $65 million in reduced annualized expenses.

Wells Fargo upgrades Engene to overweight from equal weight, citing increasing confidence in the biotech company, while UBS initiates Ensysce Biosciences with a buy rating and says its chronic pain platform offers an early-stage but differentiated opportunity. BTIG starts coverage of Quantinuum with a buy rating, describing the company as a quality leader in its sector that trades at what it views as an unjustified discount to peers.

In industrials and autos, Roth initiates Kimball Electronics as buy and says the safety-critical electronics manufacturer offers meaningful upside. Barclays initiates Dorman Products as overweight, forecasting revenue growth of 4% to 5% or more through 2028 and positioning the company near the top end of the auto aftermarket group.

Jefferies initiates Pattern Group as buy, pointing to growth from both existing brand customers and new brands, while Deutsche Bank reiterates Ulta as buy and raises its price target to $723 from $671 on confidence in sales momentum. Evercore ISI also reiterates Disney as outperform, but says the shares still need a catalyst through products, content or a step change in earnings growth to break out.

Earlier, we looked at the JQQQ blockchain fund launch that broadened digital access to the Nasdaq-100 amid selling pressure.

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