Benzinga's Bulls And Bears Of The Week: AstraZeneca, Disney, Ford, GE, Roku And More

AstraZeneca HQ and research center in Cambridge, United Kingdom

• Benzinga has examined the prospects or many investor favorite stocks over the past week.
• The bullish calls in the holiday-shortened week included old-school and newer consumer favorites.
• A COVID-19 vaccine contender and a casino stock were featured among the bearish calls.

As investors begin looking to the future, hopes for COVID-19 vaccines and the incoming U.S. presidential administration helped buoy the markets last week, lifting Dow Jones industrials to a new all-time high. The main U.S. indexes ended the holiday-shortened week higher, led by the Nasdaq's 3% gain.

There was plenty of focus on retail last week, with changes to Black Friday, mixed earnings from retailers still coming in and some early signs of what the holiday shopping season has in store.

The week also saw a new world's second richest man, additional layoffs at an entertainment giant, consolidation in the book publishing industry and fresh geopolitical tensions.

Through it all, Benzinga continued to examine the prospects for many of the stocks most popular with investors. Here are a few of this past week's most bullish and bearish posts that are worth another look.

Bulls

Walt Disney Co DIS unveiled a plan earlier this year to focus heavily on its direct-to-consumer streaming business, according to Chris Katje's "2 Catalysts That Could Boost Disney+ Subscribers." Upcoming catalysts could bolster already strong subscriber growth. What is expected from an upcoming investor presentation?

In "Oppenheimer Upgrades General Electric: 'Turnaround Gaining Traction'," Wayne Duggan discusses how General Electric Company GE is making steady progress on its turnaround efforts, its balance sheet has improved and coronavirus vaccine data is bullish for the company.

"Analyst Sees Square Hitting $300 On The Back Of Bitcoin-Heavy Cash App" by Shivdeep Dhaliwal examines the prospects for Square Inc SQ and its Cash App. See how the featured analyst believes the mobile payment company will fare against competition from the likes of PayPal and Venmo.

Jayson Derrick's "Roku's Fundamentals 'Remain Strong,' Analyst Says" focuses on why recent momentum at Roku Inc ROKU could be sustained even after a COVID-19 vaccine is available to the public. In addition, see what the company's international prospects in the new year may be.

For additional bullish calls in the past week, also have a look at the following:

• Wall Street Analysts Say These 5 Stocks Are A Buy As The World Prepares For The Post-COVID-19 Era
• China Tech Companies To Remain 'Very Much A Growth Play' Even Post-COVID-19, Says Credit Suisse
• Cramer's Year-End Game Plan: Load Up On Digital Retailers

Bears

Shanthi Rexaline's "AstraZeneca Analyst Flags Lack Of Details In Interim COVID-19 Vaccine Data" shows why one analyst called interim Phase 3 data for the AstraZeneca plc AZN coronavirus vaccine candidate "premature and insufficient" and "likely to attract a raft of criticism."

"Morgan Stanley Downgrades Ford, Says EV Strategy Is 'Not Fully Clear'" by Jayson Derrick makes the case that Ford Motor Company F deserves credit for expressing a "sense of urgency" in building out its electric vehicle lineup, but management's strategy is "not fully clear" at this point.

In Wayne Duggan's "Citron Shorts Palantir, Calls Stock A 'Full Casino'," see what made the famous short seller add Palantir Technologies PLTR to the holiday short list last week. Check out how much downside from current levels Citron predicts by the end of the year.

With Caesars Entertainment Inc CZR stock up more than 100% in six months, it is time for a downgrade on valuation and some risks ahead. So says "Caesars Entertainment Gets Downgrade On Valuation, Short-Term Risks" by Chris Katje.

Be sure to check out these additional bearish calls:

• Bitcoin Takes A Thanksgiving Swoon
• Why Scott Nations Is Bearish On Crude Oil
• Mexico's Cannabis Legalization Bill Will Boost Business, But There Are Concerns

At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.

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Photo courtesy: AstraZeneca