Benzinga's Top Upgrades, Downgrades For September 19, 2019

Upgrades

• Wells Fargo changed the rating for Cousins Properties Inc CUZ from Market Perform to Outperform. For the second quarter, Cousins Properties had an EPS of $0.28, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.15. The total market value of Cousins Properties's outstanding shares is at $4.8 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $40.40 and a 52-week-low of $30.12. Cousins Properties's stock last closed at $36.23 per share.
• For Hyatt Hotels Corp H, Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy. For the second quarter, Hyatt Hotels had an EPS of $0.76, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.72. The current market cap for Hyatt Hotels is at $8.0 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $81.57 and a 52-week-low of $63.45. Hyatt Hotels's stock last closed at $75.71 per share.
• For Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc LGND, Barclays upgraded the stock from Equal-Weight to Overweight. For the second quarter, Ligand Pharmaceuticals had an EPS of $0.68, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $2.59. The current market cap for Ligand Pharmaceuticals is at $2.1 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $278.62 and a 52-week-low of $84.45. Ligand Pharmaceuticals's stock last closed at $99.27 per share.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock for QTS Realty Trust Inc QTS from Equal-Weight to Overweight. In the second quarter, QTS Realty Trust showed an EPS of $0.65, compared to $0.64 from the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $50.05 and a 52-week-low of $34.27. QTS Realty Trust's stock last closed at $48.34 per share.
• HSBC upgraded the stock for Millicom International Cellular SA TIGO from Hold to Buy. The stock has a 52-week-high of $74.71 and a 52-week-low of $48.65. Millicom Intl Cellular's stock last closed at $49.46 per share.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock for Twilio Inc TWLO from Equal-Weight to Overweight. In the second quarter, Twilio showed an EPS of $0.03, compared to $0.03 from the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $151.00 and a 52-week-low of $62.43. Twilio's stock last closed at $112.47 per share.

Downgrades

• KeyBanc downgraded the stock for Akamai Technologies Inc AKAM from Overweight to Sector Weight. For the second quarter, Akamai Technologies had an EPS of $1.07, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.83. The stock has a 52-week-high of $93.12 and a 52-week-low of $57.18. Akamai Technologies's stock last closed at $90.94 per share.
• TD Securities downgraded the stock for Altice USA Inc ATUS from Buy to Hold. Altice USA earned $0.13 in the second quarter, compared to ($0.13) in the year-ago quarter. The current market cap for Altice USA is at $13.4 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $29.96 and a 52-week-low of $14.49. Altice USA's stock last closed at $29.90 per share.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock for Bandwidth Inc BAND from Equal-Weight to Underweight. In the second quarter, Bandwidth showed an EPS of ($0.04), compared to $0.20 from the year-ago quarter. The total market value of Bandwidth's outstanding shares is at $858.0 million. The stock has a 52-week-high of $90.63 and a 52-week-low of $27.75. Bandwidth's stock last closed at $71.87 per share.
• Evercore ISI Group downgraded the stock for Brown-Forman Corp (NYSE: BF-B) from Underperform to In-Line. In the first quarter, Brown-Forman showed an EPS of $0.39, compared to $0.41 from the year-ago quarter. The current market cap for Brown-Forman is at $12.1 billion.
• Bank of America changed the rating for Banco Macro SA BMA from Buy to Underperform. Banco Macro earned $2.59 in the second quarter, compared to $1.61 in the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $77.31 and a 52-week-low of $21.41. Banco Macro's stock last closed at $24.20 per share.
• Bank of America downgraded the stock for Check Point Software Technologies Ltd CHKP from Buy to Underperform. In the second quarter, Check Point Software Tech showed an EPS of $1.38, compared to $1.37 from the year-ago quarter. Check Point Software Tech's market cap stands at $16.7 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $132.75 and a 52-week-low of $98.57. Check Point Software Tech's stock last closed at $111.09 per share.
• For China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd CHU, Bernstein downgraded the stock from Outperform to Market Perform. Interestingly, in the first quarter, China Unicom's EPS was $0.01. The current market cap for China Unicom is at $10.5 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $13.66 and a 52-week-low of $9.05. China Unicom's stock last closed at $10.62 per share.
• Berenberg downgraded the stock for CME Group Inc CME from Buy to Hold. In the second quarter, CME Group showed an EPS of $1.76, compared to $1.74 from the year-ago quarter. CME Group's market cap stands at $40.9 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $224.91 and a 52-week-low of $161.05. CME Group's stock last closed at $216.17 per share.
• Bernstein changed the rating for Costco Wholesale Corp COST from Market Perform to Underperform. For the third quarter, Costco Wholesale had an EPS of $1.89, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $1.70. Costco Wholesale's market cap stands at $121.2 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $307.34 and a 52-week-low of $189.51. Costco Wholesale's stock last closed at $292.43 per share.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock for Digital Realty Trust Inc DLR from Overweight to Equal-Weight. For the second quarter, Digital Realty Trust had an EPS of $1.64, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $1.66. The current market cap for Digital Realty Trust is at $23.7 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $129.57 and a 52-week-low of $100.05. Digital Realty Trust's stock last closed at $125.26 per share.
• For Five9 Inc FIVN, Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock from Overweight to Equal-Weight. Five9 earned $0.20 in the second quarter, compared to $0.11 in the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $65.45 and a 52-week-low of $34.66. Five9's stock last closed at $57.98 per share.
• For Hilton Grand Vacations Inc HGV, Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. In the second quarter, Hilton Grand Vacations showed an EPS of $0.43, compared to $1.10 from the year-ago quarter. Hilton Grand Vacations's market cap stands at $4.4 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $35.03 and a 52-week-low of $24.16. Hilton Grand Vacations's stock last closed at $33.35 per share.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock for SBA Communications Corp SBAC from Overweight to Equal-Weight. In the second quarter, SBA Communications showed an EPS of $0.28, compared to $0.01 from the year-ago quarter. The total market value of SBA Communications's outstanding shares is at $555.7 million. The stock has a 52-week-high of $270.42 and a 52-week-low of $146.13. SBA Communications's stock last closed at $253.39 per share.
• Bank of America downgraded the stock for SciPlay Corp SCPL from Buy to Underperform. In the second quarter, SciPlay earned $0.54. The stock has a 52-week-high of $18.75 and a 52-week-low of $9.12. SciPlay's stock last closed at $11.35 per share.
• For Grupo Supervielle SA SUPV, Bank of America downgraded the stock from Neutral to Underperform. Interestingly, in the second quarter, Grupo Supervielle's EPS was $0.49. The stock has a 52-week-high of $11.62 and a 52-week-low of $2.25. Grupo Supervielle's stock last closed at $2.97 per share.
• Macquarie changed the rating for United States Steel Corp X from Outperform to Underperform. In the second quarter, United States Steel showed an EPS of $0.45, compared to $1.46 from the year-ago quarter. United States Steel's market cap stands at $6.1 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $30.91 and a 52-week-low of $10.16. United States Steel's stock last closed at $12.45 per share.

Initiations

• UBS initiated coverage on Afya Ltd AFYA with a Buy rating. The price target for Afya is set at $29.00. Afya's market cap stands at $2.5 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $32.64 and a 52-week-low of $21.81. Afya's stock last closed at $22.97 per share.
• Barclays initiated coverage on Beyond Meat Inc BYND with an Overweight rating. The price target for Beyond Meat is set at $185.00. Beyond Meat earned $0.06 in the second quarter, compared to ($1.22) in the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $239.71 and a 52-week-low of $45.00. Beyond Meat's stock last closed at $153.99 per share.
• Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Denny's Corp DENN with an Outperform rating. The price target for Denny's is set at $27.00. Denny's earned $0.23 in the second quarter, compared to $0.18 in the year-ago quarter. The current market cap for Denny's is at $955.2 million. The stock has a 52-week-high of $23.88 and a 52-week-low of $13.32. Denny's's stock last closed at $22.59 per share.
• Raymond James initiated coverage on Enterprise Financial Services Corp EFSC with an Outperform rating. The price target for Enterprise Finl Servs is set at $48.00. In the second quarter, Enterprise Finl Servs showed an EPS of $0.98, compared to $0.86 from the year-ago quarter. Enterprise Finl Servs's market cap stands at $1.1 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $55.61 and a 52-week-low of $36.09. Enterprise Finl Servs's stock last closed at $41.64 per share.
• With a rating of Neutral, B. Riley initiated coverage on iHeartMedia Inc IHRT. The price target is set at $17.00 for iHeartMedia. iHeartMedia earned $0.77 in the second quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $19.00 and a 52-week-low of $12.72. iHeartMedia's stock last closed at $14.83 per share.
• Craig-Hallum initiated coverage on Adesto Technologies Corp IOTS with a Buy rating. The price target for Adesto Technologies is set at $13.00. Adesto Technologies earned ($0.03) in the second quarter, compared to ($0.08) in the year-ago quarter. The total market value of Adesto Technologies's outstanding shares is at $136.3 million. The stock has a 52-week-high of $11.97 and a 52-week-low of $3.51. Adesto Technologies's stock last closed at $9.06 per share.
• With a rating of Hold, Stifel initiated coverage on Dave & Buster's Entertainment Inc PLAY. The price target is set at $45.00 for Dave & Buster's Enter. For the second quarter, Dave & Buster's Enter had an EPS of $0.90, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.84. The total market value of Dave & Buster's Enter's outstanding shares is at $1.8 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $67.05 and a 52-week-low of $37.21. Dave & Buster's Enter's stock last closed at $40.76 per share.
• With a rating of Overweight, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Plantronics Inc PLT. The price target is set at $58.00 for Plantronics. For the first quarter, Plantronics had an EPS of $1.32, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.74. The stock has a 52-week-high of $62.97 and a 52-week-low of $26.09. Plantronics's stock last closed at $35.62 per share.
• With a rating of Equal-Weight, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Vonage Holdings Corp VG. The price target is set at $15.00 for Vonage Holdings. For the second quarter, Vonage Holdings had an EPS of $0.08, compared to year-ago quarter EPS of $0.07. The current market cap for Vonage Holdings is at $1.5 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $14.59 and a 52-week-low of $7.92. Vonage Holdings's stock last closed at $12.74 per share.
• JP Morgan initiated coverage on Viper Energy Partners LP VNOM with an Overweight rating. The price target for Viper Energy Partners is set at $34.00. In the second quarter, Viper Energy Partners showed an EPS of $0.04, compared to $0.37 from the year-ago quarter. Viper Energy Partners's market cap stands at $1.4 billion. The stock has a 52-week-high of $44.00 and a 52-week-low of $22.76. Viper Energy Partners's stock last closed at $30.23 per share.
• Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Wingstop Inc WING with a Perform rating. Wingstop earned $0.17 in the second quarter, compared to $0.23 in the year-ago quarter. The stock has a 52-week-high of $107.43 and a 52-week-low of $56.95. Wingstop's stock last closed at $86.95 per share.