Hot or Not: Stock Market Edition [11/14/2024]

Not everything’s on fire right now… Keep reading for our hot or not list and 3 brand-new strong buy ratings.

🔥 HOT: Rivian (NASDAQ: RIVN) surged 13.7% on Wednesday following news of an expanded joint venture with Volkswagen. The German automaker is increasing its total investment to $5.8 billion from $5 billion, with VW already injecting $1 billion through a convertible note. The partnership will leverage Rivian’s innovative “zonal architecture” electrical system and software stack to power both Rivian’s upcoming R2 SUV in 2026 and new Volkswagen EVs starting in 2027. Despite the recent good news, Rivian’s stock remains down 45% YTD.

🥶 NOT: Spirit Airlines (NYSE: SAVE) plummeted -59.3% on Wednesday as the budget airline appears to be heading toward bankruptcy after merger talks with Frontier collapsed. The company announced it’s in “constructive discussions” with creditors to restructure its debt due in 2025 but warned that any agreement would likely result in the complete cancellation of existing equity. Spirit’s planned merger with JetBlue was blocked earlier in the year due to antitrust concerns, and SAVE is now down over 90% YTD.

🔥 HOT: Rocket Lab (NASDAQ: RKLB) gained 28.4% on Wednesday, its highest single-day gain in over three years. The company’s recent good fortune is thanks to the high demand for its Electron rocket, which Rocket has already successfully launched 12 of this year. And speaking of this year, shares of RKLB are up 245.5% since January, making it one of the best-performing stocks in the NASDAQ. With Rocket signing an additional $55 million worth of Electron contracts last quarter, its stellar year is showing no signs of slowing down.

🥶 NOT: Shares of Bitcoin mining company MARA Holdings (NASDAQ: MARA) fell by 14.0% on Wednesday even as Bitcoin rallied to a new all-time high. Investors saw MARA’s third-quarter revenue miss as a sign that the company’s diversification efforts are not working, and it seems that most shareholders are not convinced by the company’s attempt to rebrand itself as a “technology company.” Wednesday’s loss leaves MARA down 18.5% YTD, which is not where the company expected to be given Bitcoin’s resurgence. 

📈 Want more? Check out the biggest winners and biggest losers on WSZ. 

Strong Buys: Top Picks from Top Wall Street Analysts 

Don’t rely on stock recommendations from just anyone. With WallStreetZen, you gain access to high-conviction stock ratings from top-rated analysts every weekday. It’s a premium feature on our site, but we’ve unlocked a FREE sampling below: 

Note: Charts courtesy TradingView

CompoSecure (NASDAQ: CMPO) 

Analyst/Firm: Hal Goetsch / B. Riley Securities

Analyst ranking:  Top 7% / average return +41.03% / win rate 63% 

Yesterday’s market close:  

Price target: $23.00 

• B. Riley Securities's Hal Goetsch raised their price target on Composecure (NASDAQ: CMPO) by 27.8% from $18 to $23 on 11/11. The analyst maintained their Strong Buy rating on the stock.
• CompoSecure reported its Q3 2024 earnings.
• Goetsch told readers that the quarter's results highlight the lumpiness of both domestic and international sales because of "CompoSecure's sell-in model for metal cards."
• Looking ahead, the analyst told readers that B. Riley Securities believes there is further momentum to come for CompoSecure in international markets after a year of difficult conditions.
• Some analysts forecast over 60% upside for CMPO in the coming year. Learn more.

Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: PANW)

Analyst/Firm: Saket Kalia / Barclays

Analyst ranking: Top 3% / average return +11.01% / win rate 63% 

Yesterday’s market close:  

Price target: $425.00 

• Barclays's Saket Kalia raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) by 3.7% from $410 to $425 on 11/11. The analyst maintained their Strong Buy rating on the stock.
• Palo Alto Networks will report its Q1 2025 earnings on 11/20.
• Factors favoring a positive print, according to Kalia, include upside bookings and ARR on better channel checks, strength in platformizations, and seasonality.
• 17 analysts we track currently call PANW a Strong Buy. See what they’re saying.

AppLovin Corp. (NASDAQ: APP)

Analyst/Firm: Rob Sanderson / Loop Capital

Analyst ranking: top 11% / average return +14.49% / win rate 61% 

Yesterday’s market close:  

Price target: $385.00 

• Loop Capital's Rob Sanderson raised their price target on AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP) by 112.7% from $181 to $385 on 11/11. The analyst maintained their Strong Buy rating on the stock.
• AppLovin reported its Q3 2024 earnings.
• After the quarter's "earnings beat and above-consensus guide," Sanderson said they raised their price target because Loop Capital adjusted its model for a 30x assumed EBITDA multiple compared to its prior 17.5x.
• The analyst said they "would not be surprised to see consolidation in the stock after such rapid revaluation."
• Sanderson added that "it may take time for investors to agree with Loop Capital's revised valuation assessment" and therefore argued that readers should be "enthusiastic buyers" on any pullback in the price of the stock.
• Will APP see 30%+ upside in the coming year? Here’s what pros have to say.

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