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IBM initiated at overweight by Oppenheimer analysts
(Matthias Balk/Getty Images)

IBM gets a Wall Street-high price target from Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer slapped a price target of $360 on the stock as it initiated coverage.

Oppenheimer analysts published a bullish initiation of coverage on IBM on Friday, spotlighting software sales growth as a bright spot and the potentially rich growth in AI-related businesses to develop as reasons for their “overweight” rating:

Our bullish stance is predicated upon the following: (1) IBMs software portfolio should see sustained double-digit revenue growth driven by strength in Automation (primarily HashiCorp) and improving growth in RedHat; (2) Consulting should grow at a sustained low-single-digits with recovery in application development/management; and (3) additional revenue optionality with creation and management of AI applications (incl. Generative AI).

We believe these drivers will result in strong expansion activity with existing customers, and drive continued gross (on higher software mix) and pre-tax margin expansion. The stock should also re-rate higher when IBMs pivot to software is more widely appreciated.

Investors have seemed to focus on IBM’s software business, which merely met expectations last quarter, contributing to a post-earnings stock slide.

But beyond that, the Street’s view on the stock is pretty divided, with 11 of the 21 analysts covering the stock rating it a “buy” or the equivalent, while six have the stock at “neutral” — or as I like to call it, the gentleman’s “sell” — and four others officially branding IBM a “sell.”

Oppenheimer’s price target of $360 is indeed ahead of the consensus price target of about $292.50, which is roughly where the stock is currently trading. IBM is up about 34% this year, which is what it returned last year, as well.

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Lululemon’s stretch getting tested: Stock plunges after after outlook is cut

Lululemon shares are down double digits in premarket trading after the company cut its full-year sales and profit outlook, overshadowing a Q1 beat and raising fresh concerns about the brand’s turnaround efforts.

The company now expects fiscal 2026 revenue to be flat to down 1%, compared with its prior forecast for 2% to 4% growth. Guidance for full-year diluted earnings per share was dragged down to a range of $10.95 to $11.15, below the company’s previous guidance of $12.10 to $12.30 and well below Wall Street’s estimate of $13.26.

Key numbers for Q1:

  • EPS of $1.69 vs. the $1.68 expected.

  • Revenue of $2.47 billion vs. the $2.43 billion expected.

The modest top-line beat masked a widening divergence between Lululemons geographic markets. While international revenue rose 22% overall with a 30% increase in Mainland China, the bigger problem remains North America, where revenue fell 5%.

Interim co-CEO and CFO Meghan Frank acknowledged during the earnings call that recent product rollouts underperformed. A highly anticipated yoga campaign failed to generate its expected halo effect across broader product lines.

Profitability metrics took a major hit, with gross margins contracting by 410 basis points to 54.2% due to mounting tariff costs and promotional markdowns. Operating income consequently fell 37% year over year to $276.9 million.

“We experienced spikes of negative commentary in the media and on social channels with regard to our brand, which had an impact on traffic and overall top-line performance,” Frank said during the earnings call. “And second, not all of our product launches have met our expectations. While we have had several successful launches so far this year, we have seen others as we start Q2 not generate the anticipated guest response.”

Lululemons valuation has already been steadily compressing for years. While it was once one of retails richly valued stocks, investors have been questioning whether the company can return to the double-digit growth era.

The results also arrive during a leadership transition. Lululemon announced back in April that former Nike executive Heidi ONeill is set to take over as CEO in September, with investors looking to her to revive growth in North America and restore the brands growth.

As Lululemon faces both macroeconomic pressure and brand-specific challenges, its stock has dropped around 40% year to date.

markets

US job growth skyrocketed in May, blasting past expectations

The US economy added 172,000 jobs in the month of May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, sending 10-year Treasury yields higher.

The strong May job market surprised economists. Experts had predicted only 85,000 new jobs — just half the reported number. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, as expected.

The job growth story is a hopeful spot for the economy as consumers continue to feel inflationary pressure from the Iran war.

Job gains were buoyed by the leisure and hospitality sector, which added 70,000 jobs, as well as local government, healthcare, and education.

Both the March and April jobs reports were revised upward, making them collectively 93,000 higher than previously reported.

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