First Solar shines after Q2 beat and brighter full-year outlook

Abercrombie & Fitch popped over 3% Thursday afternoon after BTIG initiated coverage on the stock with a “buy” rating and set a $120 price target. That’s more than 35% above current trading levels.

“While we acknowledge headwinds from a selective consumer and tough comparisons, we have confidence in A&F’s ability to return to growth as AUR [average unit retail] headwinds abate at Abercrombie, a factor well within the company’s control, while traffic and brand health remain strong,” the firm wrote in the note.

BTIG also highlighted the retailer’s California-based Hollister brand, where growth is continuing to ramp up, and that cleaner inventory management is helping the retailer avoid big markdowns. Analysts also noted that Abercrombie still trades at a discount to its peers, making the upside more compelling. 

The call comes on the heels of Abercrombie’s stronger-than-expected Q2 results last month, which featured record quarterly sales and marked its 11th straight quarter of growth.

A&F shares are down 41% year to date.

Major US oil refiners like Valero, Marathon Petroleum, and Phillips 66 are outperforming more than 90% of the S&P 500 this year, as a surge in global supply from OPEC+ — essentially a price-setting alliance between OPEC and Russia — has put refiners in the catbird seat when it comes to price negotiations with producers.

“We continue to assess that refiners will set the price of crude and refiners will win in a wide range of scenarios for crude, making refiners the best vehicle for long petroleum exposure,” wrote Colin Fenton, head of commodities research at 22V Research.

Crack spreads, a measure of profit margins at refiners, have risen nearly 50% so far this year.

Cybersecurity giant CrowdStrike is climbing on Thursday after the company gave a beefy revenue outlook. Its shares are up more than 9% in early morning trading on Thursday.

CFO Burt Podbere said the company expects its fiscal year 2027 net new annual recurring revenues to grow more than 20%, an increase that would put the figure well past analyst estimates.

Assuming Wall Street’s consensus for the company’s net new ARR in fiscal 2026 ($940.3 million) is met, the company is essentially guiding for $1.13 billion in net new ARR for fiscal ’27. Wall Street was expecting $1.05 billion.

In its most recent earnings report, CrowdStrike’s total annual recurring revenue surged 20% to $4.66 billion.

Wall Street moved quickly to adjust for the bullish forecast. Deutsche Bank, Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, Capital One, and Truist, among others, all boosted their price target for the company.