Friday’s analyst calls: Goldman raises Nvidia target, Morgan Stanley likes Eli Lilly ahead of earnings
(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Thursday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) Goldman getting more bullish Nvidia was the call of Friday morning so far. Morgan Stanley was also positive on Elli Lilly ahead of earnings. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 6:25 a.m. Morgan Stanley raises Eli Lilly estimates Morgan Stanley notched its price target for Eli Lilly shares higher on increased weight-loss drug estimates. The investment bank’s target price on Eli Lilly is now at $1,158 from $1,106, implying shares could gain more than 27% from Thursday’s close. It reiterated its overweight rating on the stock. Analyst Terence Flynn said the firm raised its forecasts for Mounjaro and Zepbound — two of Eli Lilly’s blockbuster GLP-1 treatments — for the second half of 2024.”Moreso than the quarter we are focused on commentary that informs 2025 Mounjaro/Zepbound dynamics, given we are ~30% ahead on 2025 sales (MS $39bn vs. Cons $29bn),” Flynn said in a Friday note. Eli Lilly shares have surged 56.2% year to date. — Hakyung Kim 6:10 a.m. Redburn Atlantic initiates buy on Mercado Libre Latin American e-commerce company Mercado Libre should be added to investors’ carts, according to Redburn Atlantic. The firm initiated coverage on the online retailer with a buy rating and $2,800 price target, which represents 37.2% upside from where shares closed on Thursday. Mercado Libre already is one of the forefront online retailers in Latin America. While the opportunity in the U.S. e-commerce market is slowing, analyst Gonzalo Lopez notes the sector is “still at the point of acceleration” in Latin America — which should stand to benefit from lower interest rates worldwide.” MELI’s strong brand, extensive inventory, loyal customer base and growing fulfillment capabilities suggest years of very strong growth,” Lopez wrote in a research note on Friday. “This trajectory should amplify scale advantages, boost margins and drive earnings while unlocking opportunities in adjacent verticals, such as first-party products and advertising,” he added. Mercado Libre’s lending segment, Mercado Credito, is also capturing value in the fintech space in the region, according to Lopez. — Hakyung Kim 6:00: am Goldman Sachs raises Nvidia price target Goldman Sachs believes strong demand for artificial intelligence compute should help drive Nvidia shares higher. Analyst Toshiya Hari increased his price target on Nvidia shares to $150 from $135, implying 11.3% upside potential from Thursday’s close. He also reiterated his buy rating on the chipmaker. Many investors had previously perceived AI Inference — when an AI model is shown new data and draws conclusions — as a less intense segment, according to Hari. However, he said the intensity of Inference is rising and “could grow exponentially in the future,” driving his estimates for Nvidia higher.” Importantly, supported by its full-stack approach, we believe Nvidia is well-positioned to capture this growth opportunity in Inference (which is already nearing ~50% of the company’s Data Center revenue),” Hari wrote in a Friday note.Forward visibility in the data center segment also remains strong, Hari added. Year to date, Nvidia shares are up 172.2%. Shares were last trading 0.4% lower. —Hakyung Kim
