Tuesday’s Biggest Analyst Calls: Nvidia, Apple, Walmart, Salesforce, Starbucks, Amazon & More

Here are the key Wall Street analyst calls from Tuesday:

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Piper Sandler Initiates Colgate-Palmolive and Church & Dwight as OverweightPiper Sandler initiated coverage on consumer goods companies Colgate-Palmolive and Church & Dwight with an overweight rating. The firm expressed optimism regarding their risk/reward potential. Piper noted that while they are generally constructive on the sector, they believe Colgate-Palmolive and Church & Dwight offer better growth opportunities when considering macroeconomic factors, valuation, and company-specific attributes. In contrast, they see Procter & Gamble as having a more balanced risk/reward profile.

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Baird Initiates ResMed as OutperformBaird initiated coverage on ResMed, a company focused on sleep apnea solutions, with an outperform rating. The firm highlighted its bullish outlook on the stock, stating that despite concerns related to GLP-1 drugs, there is potential for future growth.

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Piper Sandler Upgrades Salesforce to OverweightPiper Sandler upgraded Salesforce from neutral to overweight. The firm sees an appealing risk/reward dynamic for Salesforce, driven by the potential for free cash flow per share to more than double by 2029, even if top-line growth remains modest at 8-9%.

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Jefferies Initiates Kenvue as BuyJefferies initiated coverage on Kenvue with a buy rating, expressing optimism about the consumer health company's growth potential. The firm believes that Kenvue, which was previously managed to prioritize cash generation, is now positioned for expansion.

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Raymond James Reinstates Uber as Strong BuyRaymond James reinstated its coverage of Uber, giving the stock a strong buy rating. The firm considers Uber’s scale to be a critical advantage in improving autonomous vehicle utilization. Raymond James is particularly optimistic about Uber’s partnership with Waymo, Google’s autonomous driving subsidiary, seeing potential in autonomous tech for future growth.

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Goldman Sachs Names AT&T a Top PickGoldman Sachs named AT&T as one of its top picks heading into the company’s earnings report due in late October. The firm expects strong wireless results and possibly a share buyback announcement, making it a favorable stock for investors at this time.

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KeyBanc Initiates Dayforce as OverweightKeyBanc started coverage on Dayforce, a human capital management (HCM) software provider, with an overweight rating. The firm believes Dayforce’s consistent execution will drive upside in estimates and possibly lead to multiple expansion in comparison to its peers in the HCM space.

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Morgan Stanley Upgrades BioNTech to OverweightMorgan Stanley upgraded BioNTech from equal weight to overweight, with a focus on the company's potential in immuno-oncology. The firm sees BioNTech’s BNT327 cancer treatment as a key driver for future growth and raised its price target for the stock from $93 to $145.

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Oppenheimer Upgrades Lowe’s to OutperformOppenheimer upgraded Lowe’s from perform to outperform, citing the company's discounted share valuation. The firm took a more optimistic stance on the home improvement retail sector, seeing potential for Lowe's to perform well in the near future.

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Jefferies Downgrades Starbucks to UnderperformJefferies downgraded Starbucks from hold to underperform, expressing concerns about the execution of necessary strategic changes under the company's new CEO. Jefferies believes operational, cultural, and technological issues at Starbucks will take time to address.

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Goldman Sachs Initiates Avidity Biosciences as OverweightGoldman Sachs initiated coverage on Avidity Biosciences with an overweight rating, seeing strong potential for the company in the rare infectious diseases space. The firm set a 12-month price target of $59 for the stock.

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Redburn Atlantic Equities Downgrades BP and Exxon to NeutralRedburn Atlantic Equities downgraded oil companies BP and Exxon from buy to neutral. The firm expressed a more cautious view on the sector due to deteriorating macroeconomic conditions for oil. Redburn anticipates that OPEC+ will need to delay the unwinding of voluntary production cuts and predicts that stock buybacks in the sector could be under pressure next year.

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Truist Downgrades Costco to HoldTruist downgraded Costco from buy to hold, citing potential sales friction and a stretched valuation. The firm believes that some of Costco’s growth catalysts are behind them, making the stock less attractive in the near term.

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Truist Upgrades Walmart to BuyOn the flip side, Truist upgraded Walmart from hold to buy, highlighting Walmart’s strong positioning for market share gains across various income levels. The firm credits Walmart’s success to its focus on price, convenience, and product assortment.

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Baird Downgrades McKesson to NeutralBaird downgraded McKesson from outperform to neutral, pointing to several negative catalysts for the healthcare company. The firm cited concerns about upcoming quarterly results and broader frustrations that have built up over recent months.

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Needham Reiterates Apple as BuyNeedham reiterated its buy rating on Apple, positioning the stock as a safe investment for the coming years. The firm believes that Apple will offer a stable option for investors seeking liquidity, especially as major tech companies like Amazon, Google, and Meta pour billions into large language models (LLMs) and other generative AI initiatives without a clear path to revenue growth.

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Oppenheimer Initiates Pinterest as OutperformOppenheimer initiated coverage on Pinterest with an outperform rating, emphasizing the platform’s rapid growth in the digital advertising space. The firm set a price target of $45 for the stock.

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Leerink Downgrades Regeneron to Market PerformLeerink downgraded biotech company Regeneron from outperform to market perform, citing concerns about its pipeline of new products. While investor enthusiasm for the company’s innovation has driven stock outperformance, the firm remains cautious about the commercial prospects of some of Regeneron’s upcoming programs.

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Guggenheim Initiates GE Vernova as BuyGuggenheim initiated coverage on GE Vernova, General Electric’s renewable energy subsidiary, with a buy rating. The firm believes that GE Vernova is in the early stages of a multi-year profitability improvement and offers a compelling investment opportunity for those looking to capitalize on electricity load growth in the U.S.

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UBS Reiterates Tesla as SellUBS reiterated its sell rating on Tesla ahead of the company’s delivery numbers expected on October 2. The firm now forecasts Tesla to report deliveries of around 470,000 vehicles for the third quarter, representing an 8% year-over-year increase.

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Bernstein Reiterates Amazon as OutperformBernstein reiterated its outperform rating on Amazon, highlighting advertising as a key driver for the company’s stock. The firm noted that Amazon’s advertising revenue, particularly from Prime Video and NFL-related ads, will become increasingly significant in the second half of the year, especially in the fourth quarter.

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Citi Reiterates Mastercard and Visa as BuyCiti reiterated its buy ratings on both Mastercard and Visa but shifted its preference toward Mastercard. The firm noted potential regulatory risks facing Visa, particularly regarding the U.S. Department of Justice’s planned lawsuit accusing Visa of anticompetitive conduct in the debit market.

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Wedbush Upgrades Comerica to OutperformWedbush upgraded Comerica from neutral to outperform, adding the regional bank to its best ideas list. The firm believes Comerica is well-positioned to benefit from a lower interest rate environment due to its sensitivity to liabilities.

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CFRA Reiterates Nvidia as BuyCFRA reiterated its buy rating on Nvidia, citing sustained demand for computing power over the coming years. The firm ranked Nvidia among its top picks, along with companies like Marvell and Broadcom, which also have significant exposure to the computing sector.

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