Benzinga's Top Ratings Upgrades, Downgrades For August 25, 2021

Upgrades

• For Kite Realty Group Trust KRG, Raymond James upgraded the previous rating of Outperform to Strong Buy. For the second quarter, Kite Realty Gr Trust had an EPS of $0.34, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.30. The current stock performance of Kite Realty Gr Trust shows a 52-week-high of $23.14 and a 52-week-low of $10.00. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $19.13.
• Raymond James upgraded the previous rating for Okta Inc OKTA from Outperform to Strong Buy. Okta earned $0.10 in the first quarter, compared to $0.07 in the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $294.00 and a 52-week-low of $185.05. Okta closed at $247.55 at the end of the last trading period.
• For FactSet Research Systems Inc FDS, Barclays upgraded the previous rating of Equal-Weight to Overweight. FactSet Research Systems earned $2.72 in the third quarter, compared to $2.86 in the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $376.57 and a 52-week-low of $294.21. FactSet Research Systems closed at $367.64 at the end of the last trading period.
• Berenberg upgraded the previous rating for Univar Solutions Inc UNVR from Hold to Buy. For the second quarter, Univar Solns had an EPS of $0.57, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.33. The stock has a 52-week-high of $28.00 and a 52-week-low of $15.70. At the end of the last trading period, Univar Solns closed at $23.12.

See all analyst ratings upgrades.

Downgrades

• According to Argus Research, the prior rating for Beyond Meat Inc BYND was changed from Buy to Hold. For the second quarter, Beyond Meat had an EPS of $0.31, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.02. The stock has a 52-week-high of $221.00 and a 52-week-low of $99.86. At the end of the last trading period, Beyond Meat closed at $124.30.
• According to JP Morgan, the prior rating for Nordstrom Inc JWN was changed from Neutral to Underweight. Nordstrom earned $0.49 in the second quarter, compared to $1.62 in the year-ago quarter. The current stock performance of Nordstrom shows a 52-week-high of $46.45 and a 52-week-low of $11.72. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $37.81.
• B of A Securities downgraded the previous rating for CAE Inc CAE from Neutral to Underperform. CAE earned $0.15 in the first quarter, compared to $0.08 in the year-ago quarter. The current stock performance of CAE shows a 52-week-high of $32.19 and a 52-week-low of $13.80. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $28.29.
• Cowen & Co. downgraded the previous rating for Boston Beer Co Inc SAM from Market Perform to Underperform. For the second quarter, Boston Beer Co had an EPS of $4.75, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $4.88. The current stock performance of Boston Beer Co shows a 52-week-high of $1349.98 and a 52-week-low of $584.60. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $608.11.
• According to Morgan Stanley, the prior rating for Victoria's Secret & Co VSCO was changed from Overweight to Equal-Weight. Interestingly, in the second quarter, Victoria's Secret's EPS was $1.71. At the end of the last trading period, Victoria's Secret closed at $67.39.
• According to Morgan Stanley, the prior rating for PAE Inc PAE was changed from Overweight to Equal-Weight. PAE earned $0.15 in the second quarter, compared to $0.17 in the year-ago quarter. The current stock performance of PAE shows a 52-week-high of $10.70 and a 52-week-low of $7.42. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $7.45.
• According to Piper Sandler, the prior rating for Campbell Soup Co CPB was changed from Overweight to Neutral. For the third quarter, Campbell Soup had an EPS of $0.57, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.83. The stock has a 52-week-high of $54.08 and a 52-week-low of $41.93. At the end of the last trading period, Campbell Soup closed at $42.02.
• For Theravance Biopharma Inc TBPH, Morgan Stanley downgraded the previous rating of Overweight to Underweight. For the second quarter, Theravance Biopharma had an EPS of $0.80, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $1.00. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $22.74 and a 52-week-low of $9.20. Theravance Biopharma closed at $9.24 at the end of the last trading period.
• According to Keybanc, the prior rating for Inovalon Holdings Inc INOV was changed from Overweight to Sector Weight. In the second quarter, Inovalon Holdings showed an EPS of $0.19, compared to $0.15 from the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $40.52 and a 52-week-low of $17.56. Inovalon Holdings closed at $40.39 at the end of the last trading period.

See all analyst ratings downgrades.

Initiations

• Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on Boohoo Group PLC BHHOF with a Buy rating. The current stock performance of Boohoo Group shows a 52-week-high of $4.65 and a 52-week-low of $3.56. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $3.80.
• With an Outperform rating, FBN Securities initiated coverage on Tenable Holdings Inc TENB. The price target seems to have been set at $60.00 for Tenable Holdings. Tenable Holdings earned $0.09 in the second quarter, compared to $0.04 in the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $58.45 and a 52-week-low of $33.25. Tenable Holdings closed at $42.59 at the end of the last trading period.
• BTIG initiated coverage on Rani Therapeutics Holdings Inc RANI with a Buy rating. The price target for Rani Therapeutics Hldgs is set to $24.00.  Rani Therapeutics Hldgs closed at $17.76 at the end of the last trading period.
• With a Buy rating, MKM Partners initiated coverage on Equinor ASA EQNR. The price target seems to have been set at $34.00 for Equinor. In the second quarter, Equinor showed an EPS of $0.48, compared to $0.20 from the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $23.36 and a 52-week-low of $12.11. Equinor closed at $21.04 at the end of the last trading period.
• Cowen & Co. initiated coverage on Stryve Foods Inc SNAX with an Outperform rating. The price target for Stryve Foods is set to $12.00. Stryve Foods earned $0.26 in the second quarter. At the end of the last trading period, Stryve Foods closed at $6.74.
• Stifel initiated coverage on Rover Group Inc ROVR with a Buy rating. The price target for Rover Group is set to $14.00. Interestingly, in the second quarter, Rover Group's EPS was $0.63. Rover Group closed at $11.29 at the end of the last trading period.
• B of A Securities initiated coverage on Rent-A-Center Inc RCII with a Buy rating. The price target for Rent-A-Center is set to $85.00. Rent-A-Center earned $1.63 in the second quarter, compared to $0.80 in the year-ago quarter. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $66.70 and a 52-week-low of $27.83. Rent-A-Center closed at $64.95 at the end of the last trading period.
• With a Buy rating, Deutsche Bank initiated coverage on Ardagh Metal Packaging SA AMBP. The price target seems to have been set at $14.00 for Ardagh Metal Packaging.  Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $11.67.
• With a Buy rating, Needham initiated coverage on Alphatec Holdings Inc ATEC. The price target seems to have been set at $18.00 for Alphatec Holdings. For the second quarter, Alphatec Holdings had an EPS of $0.39, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.25. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $19.36 and a 52-week-low of $5.45. Alphatec Holdings closed at $13.08 at the end of the last trading period.
• With a Buy rating, HC Wainwright & Co. initiated coverage on Salarius Pharmaceuticals Inc SLRX. The price target seems to have been set at $5.00 for Salarius Pharmaceuticals. For the second quarter, Salarius Pharmaceuticals had an EPS of $0.07, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.13. At the moment, the stock has a 52-week-high of $3.50 and a 52-week-low of $0.63. Salarius Pharmaceuticals closed at $0.94 at the end of the last trading period.
• B. Riley Securities initiated coverage on Perpetua Resources Corp PPTA with a Buy rating. The price target for Perpetua Resources is set to $22.00. Perpetua Resources earned $0.29 in the second quarter. The current stock performance of Perpetua Resources shows a 52-week-high of $9.45 and a 52-week-low of $5.13. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $5.37.
• With a Buy rating, Berenberg initiated coverage on Avalara Inc AVLR. The price target seems to have been set at $200.00 for Avalara. For the second quarter, Avalara had an EPS of $0.02, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.04. The current stock performance of Avalara shows a 52-week-high of $185.37 and a 52-week-low of $115.00. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $176.00.
• With a Buy rating, Berenberg initiated coverage on Vertex Inc VERX. The price target seems to have been set at $27.00 for Vertex. In the second quarter, Vertex showed an EPS of $0.08, compared to $0.16 from the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $39.71 and a 52-week-low of $16.06. At the end of the last trading period, Vertex closed at $20.75.
• B. Riley Securities initiated coverage on Vincerx Pharma Inc VINC with a Buy rating. The price target for Vincerx Pharma is set to $26.00. In the second quarter, Vincerx Pharma showed an EPS of $0.12, compared to $0.01 from the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $26.75 and a 52-week-low of $11.00. At the end of the last trading period, Vincerx Pharma closed at $14.47.
• Barclays initiated coverage on Victoria's Secret & Co VSCO with an Overweight rating. The price target for Victoria's Secret is set to $100.00. In the second quarter, Victoria's Secret earned $1.71. Moreover, at the end of the last trading period, the closing price was at $67.39.

See all analyst ratings initiations.