Here are Wednesday's biggest analyst calls: Tesla, Wynn, Walmart, Alphabet, Western Alliance & more

Published Wed, May 17 20238:31 AM EDT

Here are Wednesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Bernstein reiterates Tesla as underperform Bernstein said after the automaker's shareholder meeting that it sees trouble ahead. "Elon Musk reiterated several times that the next 12 months will be difficult for Tesla, and attributed his caution to macro issues, which is inconsistent with the relative constructive outlook for the broader auto industry. We believe Tesla's challenges instead stem from its limited model lineup, and that 2024 could be even more challenging." Guggenheim initiates MSG Entertainment as buy Guggenheim said the entertainment company is "well positioned to grow." "Initiating at BUY, $37 PT; Consumer Tailwinds, Unique NY Concentrated Venue Portfolio - MSGE Is Well Positioned to Grow." Bank of America upgrades AppLovin to buy from neutral Bank of America said it sees accelerating revenue growth for the mobile tech company. "We upgrade AppLovin to Buy based on the view that its new machine learning engine (Axon 2.0) will accelerate revenue growth in 2023." Redburn upgrades BioNTech to buy from neutral Redburn said the biotech stock is very attractive. "The valuation of BioNTech, however, has moved significantly. For much of the last few years, we have argued BioNTech is meaningfully overvalued, but with the pendulum swinging in the other direction, leaving 58% potential upside, we upgrade to Buy from Neutral." Guggenheim upgrades Visteon to buy from neutral Guggenheim said it sees "supply-chain revenue upside" for the auto supplier. "We believe VC now has the most potential supply-chain revenue upside in our coverage with clear visibility to improvement in 1-2 quarters." Credit Suisse upgrades iQIYI to outperform from neutral Credit Suisse said in its upgrade of the Chinese online video platform company that it likes its "strong" margins. "We are increasingly convinced about IQ's profitability outlook and leading position: (1) its unique strength in content innovation/project selection should sustain its leadership in a market that increasingly focuses on premium content; (2) consecutive quarters of strong margin beat proves an effective ROI-driven strategy." Stifel initiates EVgo as buy Stifel said the battery charging company is "well positioned in a fast charging business." " EVgo is a leading EV charging company based in Los Angeles. The company currently operates the second largest DC fast charging network after Tesla, and appears well positioned to be a leading player going forward." Read more about this call here. Barclays upgrades Wynn to overweight from equal weight Barclays said the "best is yet to come" for the casino operator. "Macau fundamentals have moved well ahead of shares, while Las Vegas is likely more resilient than appreciated." Read more about this call here. Mizuho downgrades WeWork to neutral from buy The firm said its prior buy rating was "wrong" on shares of WeWork and that "macro headwinds have been exacerbated." "We now see our base case business assumptions, specifically occupancy targets, as unachievable, leading to higher cash burn and eventually driving the need for outside capital. We do not see FCF positive till YE25." Citi adds a positive catalyst watch on Advance Auto Parts Citi said the auto parts retailer is a "turnaround" story. "AAP sets up well as a turnaround story as 1Q will likely be close to the trough for the business combined with inexpensive valuation, favorable industry dynamics, and a new CEO announcement expected. Evercore ISI upgrades Norfolk Southern and Old Dominion to outperform from in line Evercore said Norfolk and Old Dominion have "quality" business models. "As such, we are upgrading both Norfolk Southern (NSC) and Old Dominion (ODFL) to Outperform from In Line as we look to relative valuation and quality business models both in times of expected choppy performance, but also as we begin to contemplate the eventual emergence from what has now been a nearly 16-month 'freight recession.'" Barclays reiterates Alphabet as overweight Barclays said Alphabet will continue to flex its AI "prowess strongly." "We see shares continuing to outperform based on an improving ad market in 2Q, higher incremental margins, and this AI sentiment shift getting follow-through." Stephens reiterates Walmart as overweight Stephens said it's standing by its overweight rating heading into Walmart earnings Thursday. "We continue to think Walmart is positioned to be a relative winner in the food and consumer discretionary sector, with a well established low price position in the marketplace, continual improvements in assortment and customer experience and a management team that is laser focused on execution and capital allocation." Bank of America reiterates ServiceNow as buy Bank of America said the software company is well positioned for AI. " ServiceNow has continued to land larger customers over time and has seen consistent expansion activity." Stephens reiterates Western Alliance as overweight Stephens said it's standing by its overweight rating on the regional bank. "Yesterday afternoon, WAL filed a presentation that included a QTD update on several topics. WAL reiterated deposit flow stabilization as of March 20th and further noted QTD deposit growth at 5/12 had exceeded the Company's $2 bil. dollar guided target." Read more about this call here. Credit Suisse downgrades Knight-Swift and Werner to neutral from outperform Credit Suisse downgraded several trucking companies on Thursday and says it's turning more cautious. "We have become increasingly cautious on the trucking cycle as low rates persist. With trucking stocks posting solid year-to-date gains, we advocate trimming exposure; we lower our EPS estimates across the board and downgrade Knight-Swift (KNX) and Werner (WERN) to Neutral."