(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.) A cloud stock and two gold miners were in focus Thursday among early analyst calls. Morgan Stanley downgraded Snowflake following the company’s earnings announcement. Elsewhere, Jefferies upgraded Barrick Gold and Newmont Mining to buy from hold, calling for major gains ahead for both miners. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 6:22 a.m.: Morgan Stanley upgrades AutoNation Morgan Stanley thinks AutoNation may be able to successfully navigate a still complicated but improving overhang for the broader autos sector. The firm upgraded AutoNation to equal weight from underweight and raised its price target on the car retailer to $140 per share from $117. Morgan Stanley’s forecast implies about 2% downside from Wednesday’s $144.42 close. “We remain optimistic about the management of CEO Mike Manley and his ability to navigate the organization through macro uncertainty,” analyst Adam Jonas said. “Following 4Q earnings, the new vehicle market continues to demonstrate resilience with new car pricing holding up higher for longer, even setting ASP (Average Selling Price) highs despite higher interest rates, recovering inventory and rising incentives,” he added. AutoNation has slipped nearly 4% from the start of the year. AN YTD mountain AN in 2024 — Brian Evans 6:13 a.m.: Analysts are sticking by Salesforce stock after fourth-quarter earnings beat While Salesforce’s revenue guidance came in lower than expected, analysts are largely standing by the cloud software company. Salesforce reported a beat on fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and revenue. It also announced a dividend of 40 cents per share payable as of April 11. However, the company also said it sees single-digit revenue growth for fiscal 2025. The disappointing forward guidance is reflective of softness in its professional services segment as well as a weaker buying environment, according to financial chief Amy Weaver. Despite the mixed report, Goldman Sachs reiterated a buy rating on Salesforce stock a $345 per share price target, or about 15% upside moving forward. “We believe that Salesforce remains poised to be one of the most strategic application software companies in the $1tn+ TAM cloud industry and is on a path to $50bn in revenue,” analyst Kash Rangan said. “The pandemic has transformed how companies initiate, build and harness customer relationships digitally, making for steady demand in core products.” Bank of America also kept its buy rating on the stock and raised its price target to $360 from $350, equating to about 20% upside ahead. “We continue to believe that 30%+ FCF [free cash flow] growth is possible in each of the next 3 years, and that Salesforce is emerging as the next quality GARP [growth at a reasonable price] stock,” Bank of America’s Brad Sills said. UBS reiterated a neutral rating alongside its $310 per share price target on Salesforce, or more than 3% upside ahead. The firm struck a somewhat cautious tone toward Saleforce’s weak forward guidance, but noted that “it’s just a modest negative given Salesforce’s explanation and (we believe) conservative outlook.” — Brian Evans 5:54 a.m.: Morgan Stanley downgrades Snowflake following fourth quarter results Morgan Stanley thinks Snowflake’s mixed fourth-quarter results coupled with the departure of chief executive Frank Slootman is ample reason to move to the sidelines. The bank downgraded the cloud stock to equal weight from overweight and lowered its price target to $175 per share from $230. Morgan Stanley’s forecast equates to nearly 24% downside from Wednesday’s close. Shares pulled back more than 22% in premarket trading on Thursday. SNOW 1D mountain SNOW drops Analyst Keith Weiss pointed out that revenue for the fourth quarter grew at a slightly slower-than-expected pace. He also noted that “A sharper than anticipated deceleration implied in the FY25 guide and CEO departure likely spikes investor concerns around competition and positioning for Generative AI.” The company issued a lower-than-expected first-quarter product revenue forecast on Wednesday, estimating a range of $745 million to $750 million. Analysts polled by StreetAccount forecast $759 million. Product revenue growth of 33% year over year in the fourth-quarter was also below Wall Street estimates. — Brian Evans 5:54 a.m.: Jefferies upgrades mining stocks Newmont and Barrick Gold It’s time to load up on shares of beaten-down gold miners Newmont and Barrick Gold , according to Jefferies. Analyst Matthew Murphy upgraded both stocks to buy from hold. He also raised his price targets on Newmont to $38 from $34, implying upside of 27.2%. His Barrick target of $21, up from $15, points to a 46% surge over the next 12 months. Murphy noted there’s a disconnect between what Barrick has accomplished in the past five years and its stock price. In that time, shares are up 13%, while gold prices have soared 55%. In that time, he said the company’s debt has fallen from about $4 billion to $600 million. Still, “Part of the challenge is the reliability of the portfolio is still not there. The one segment which has been more or less solid has been Africa (and Middle East, AME). The sooner the rest of the portfolio can run like Africa, the better,” Murphy said. To be sure, he noted that the company “stands a good chance of reversing the upward pressure on unit costs with the help of its high quality asset portfolio. This will help reverse recent price weakness and restore value.” As for Newmont, Jefferies thinks the acquisition of Newcrest, announced in November, can “create value” for shareholders. “We see asset disposals and cost improvements as likely to reverse share price weakness as the market recognizes the strength of the asset portfolio.” Both stocks have struggled year to date, losing more than 20% each. Gold, meanwhile, is down just 1.5%. — Fred Imbert
