Investing.com — Here is your Pro Recap of the top takeaways from Wall Street analysts for the past week.
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Tesla
What happened? On Monday, New Street upgraded Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:) to Buy with a $460 price target
*TLDR: Tesla’s growth to re-accelerate with new models. Analysts see long-term upside.
What’s the full story? New Street analysts predict that growth in the automotive sector will re-accelerate with Tesla’s launch of lower-cost models and cost reductions balancing price cuts. The analysts highlight that Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology progress is accelerating, with potential launches of partially unsupervised FSD and robotaxi test fleets expected this year. While the road to large-scale deployments remains challenging, they anticipate that Tesla’s stock price will reflect these growing opportunities.
Significant long-term upside is noted, envisioning a potential market cap of up to $4.7 trillion by 2030 if Tesla transitions the FSD opportunity to a dominant fleet of robotaxis. Despite acknowledging uncertainties such as weak demand and timing of new models, which could pressure the stock in the short term, the analysts justify further upside to Tesla’s stock price. They view the risk-reward of owning Tesla stock as positive.
Apple
What happened? On Tuesday, MoffettNathanson downgraded Apple (NASDAQ:) to Sell with a 188 price target.
*TLDR: Apple shares rise despite negative news. Analysts downgrade to Sell.
What’s the full story? MoffettNathanson analysts observe that despite Apple shares rising steadily over the past few months, the underlying news has been largely negative. The analysts initially positioned Apple as a potential AI leader but noted that this success was already priced into its stretched valuation. They highlighted significant risks, including an antitrust case against Alphabet (NASDAQ:) and weakening prospects in China, which the market had overlooked.
Moreover, the analysts pointed out disappointing consumer responses to Apple’s AI features and the challenging outlook for fully agentic AI. Given these factors, they expressed concerns over Apple’s high multiple and low growth rate compared to its peers. As a result, MoffettNathanson downgraded Apple to a Sell rating with a $188 target price, citing an unattractive outlook for its shares.
Twilio Inc.
What happened? On Wednesday, Mizuho upgraded Twilio Inc (NYSE:) to Outperform with a $140 price target.
*TLDR: Twilio upgraded ahead of Investor Day. Analysts see significant upside.
What’s the full story? Mizuho analysts upgrade Twilio ahead of its January 23rd Investor Day. They cite three reasons: meaningful top-line stabilization and improved revenue visibility, significant operating margin improvement, and the potential for a new share buy-back announcement. The analysts believe that greater clarity on these drivers will support share outperformance.
The analysts foresee significant upside potential to Twilio’s non-GAAP operational income estimates in 2025 and beyond. They project 10% and 15% upside in 2025 and 2026, respectively, due to Segment achieving breakeven, operational leverage in core communications, and the end of a cash bonus program. Additionally, they highlight that management compensation tied to operational income targets and closely tracking free cash flow will contribute to raising the long-term operational margin target to over 22% at the upcoming Investor Day.
McDonald’s
What happened? On Friday, Citi upgraded McDonald’s (NYSE:) to Buy with a $334 price target.
*TLDR: McDonald’s to leverage scale in 2025. Analysts forecast growth.
What’s the full story? Citi analysts forecast that McDonald’s will leverage its scale advantages in 2025 to drive share gains in key markets and recover margins and EBIT growth. They believe MCD has addressed the challenge of national value by allowing franchisees to use base item prices to manage profitability, and they expect national advertising in 2025 to win back lost occasions, fueling 3%+ US comp growth and multiple expansion.
The analysts see improving US sales and share gains driven by a revamped value platform, national messaging, new products, and effective app usage. They highlight greater control of real estate, better franchisee demand, and influence in China as factors contributing to higher visibility into top-line growth. Despite challenges outside the US, they expect improving consumer conditions and share gains in 2025 based on value strategies.
