Benzinga's Bulls And Bears Of The Week: Apple, Amazon, Kroger, Netflix, Pfizer And More

• Benzinga has examined the prospects for many of investors' favorite stocks over the past week.
• The past week's bullish calls included a couple of FAANG stocks and a company that just took a big hit.
• The iPhone maker, a COVID-19 vaccine play and a cryptocurrency-related stock were among the bearish calls seen during the week.

May has arrived, and investors are having to decide whether to "sell and go away," given the backdrop of a stronger-than-expected earnings season, improving economic data, a strong vaccine rollout in the United States, government stimulus and easy monetary policy from the Federal Reserve.

Yet, stocks have been basically treading water for the past two weeks, which may suggest that all the good news is priced in. This comes amid the chip shortage, the struggling tech sector and Fed Chair Yellen's hinting at future rate hikes. To cap it all off, high expectations for employment were dashed by a weak jobs report. That may soothe worries over the economy overheating and how the Fed might respond, though.

In other news last week, the White House gave the pharmaceutical industry a scare, a leading social media platform made a contentious decision, and a billionaire philanthropist is about to go solo.

The Dow Jones industrials ended May's first trading week about 2.6% higher, while the S&P 500 saw a smaller gain, and the Nasdaq lagged with a retreat of about 1.5%.

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.

The Bulls

In Adam Eckert's "Why Amazon Stock Has A Lot Of Room To Go Higher," check out why a market strategist told CNBC's "Trading Nation" that Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN stock has plenty of upside potential.

For more on Amazon, see "Amazon Created A Bull Trap After Bezos Unloaded Shares: What's Next?"

Chris Katje's "Mark Cuban Puts Money Where Mouth Is With $1M Bets On Netflix, Amazon And Crypto" discusses why this renowned entrepreneur has bet big that Amazon and Netflix Inc NFLX together will beat the S&P 500 over the next decade.

For another take, check out "Jim Cramer: 'FAANG Owns The Future'."

In "This COVID-19 Vaccine Stock Quietly Soared 75% In April: Is There More Upside Ahead?" Shanthi Rexaline focuses on why BioNTech SE BNTX stock has rallied and where it goes from here.

"Peloton Analysts Bullish After Earnings Beat: 'Recalls Not As Bad As Feared'" by Wayne Duggan examines why Peloton Interactive Inc PTON remains an excellent long-term opportunity.

Also have a look at "What 23 Analyst Ratings Have To Say About Peloton Interactive."

ConocoPhillips COP is poised to accelerate cash returns at an earlier and more significant pace than its rivals. So says the analyst featured in Priya Nigam's "What Makes ConocoPhillips Stock So Attractive?"

The Bears

Rachit Vats' "Cathie Wood Slashes Apple Stake To Half — Also Trims Google, Fastly: What You Need To Know" shows that ARK Invest dumped Apple Inc. AAPL shares and made other big changes this week.

On the other hand, check out "Apple Options Traders Bet Against Cathie Wood."

"Why This Pfizer Analyst Is Sidelined After Beat-And-Raise Q1" by Shanthi Rexaline suggests that not all analysts were impressed with the Pfizer Inc. PFE first-quarter earnings report. See what this analyst is looking for.

Coinbase Global Inc. COIN could be in trouble, according to "If Dogecoin, Bitcoin Begin 'To Crack,' This Stock Will Be 'One Of The Easiest Shorts There Is,' Says Expert Trader" by Madhukumar Warrier.

Also see "'PreMarket Prep' Highlights Technical Level To Watch For Coinbase".

In Phil Hall's "Kroger and Alberstons Stocks Get Downgrade: What You Need To Know," find out how the landscape is shifting for Kroger Co KR and its industry and what that may mean in the coming months.

In "ViacomCBS Strong Earnings Offset By High Investments, Analyst Says," Priya Nigam looks at why the bottom line at ViacomCBS Inc VIAC will be under pressure due to its high investments.

"ViacomCBS: Debt Overview" offers a look at what is happening with the company's debt.

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

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Image: Gage Skidmore on Wikimedia Commons