(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Friday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) Apple and a food delivery stock were among the names being talked about by analysts on Friday. Raymond James hiked its price target on Apple to $250. Meanwhile, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage of DoorDash with a buy rating and a price target implying upside of more than 60%. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 5:55 a.m.: Morgan Stanley slashes outlook on WW International Morgan Stanley is losing confidence in Weight Watchers parent company WW International . The rise of obesity medication such as Ozempic and Mounjaro presents a long-term headwind on WW’s core business, according to analyst Nathan Feather. Although the company has managed to offset the threat to its core business with the growth in its clinical segment, even this has now flatlined — calling into question the company’s outlook, Feather said. The analyst downgraded shares to equal weight from overweight. He also cut his price target to $1.25 from $6.25, which was 7 cents below Thursday’s close price. “With both segments seemingly backtracking, we no longer have conviction [that] Clinic will be able to ramp fast enough to offset the headwinds on the core and move to EW as we wait for greater clarity,” Feather wrote in a Friday note. Feather also highlighted concerns in the company’s liquidity profile. WW has $1.4 million in debt, but negative free cash flow in 2024 and less than $100 million in cash, he added. Shares have plunged nearly 85% in 2024. WW YTD mountain WW year to date — Hakyung Kim 5:33 a.m.: Redburn Atlantic initiates DoorDash as a buy DoorDash is a stand-out name in the food delivery sector, according to Redburn Atlantic. Analyst James Cordwell initiated coverage on Doordash with a buy rating. His price target of $170 indicates 68% upside from Thursday’s close. Out of the four food delivery stocks in his coverage, DoorDash is the only stock he named a buy. “While consensus essentially reflects a mean reversion in trends at the different platforms, we believe the sector is more likely to be characterized by winner-takes-most dynamics, leaving our estimates for DoorDash substantially ahead of consensus,” Cordwell wrote in a Friday note. To be sure, he noted that DoorDash’s first-quarter adjusted EBITDA came in just in-line with consensus estimates, even as gross order value topped expectations. “As an immediate reaction to the results, the stock was punished given market assumptions that adjusted EBITDA margin expansion would remain the priority. However, in our view, the company is pursuing the right strategy and will, in time, be rewarded accordingly,” the analyst added. Shares are up just 1.9% in 2024. DASH YTD mountain AAPL year to date — Hakyung Kim 5:33 a.m.: Raymond James raises Apple price target Raymond James is getting more bullish on Apple ahead of earnings. Analysts Srini Pajjuri raised his price target on the iPhone maker to $250 from $200, implying upside of 15% from Thursday’s close. He also reiterated his outperform rating on shares. Pajjuri called Apple, which reports earnings next week, a “more stable AI play for volatile times.” “We do not expect near-term results to change the AI narrative … and remain optimistic that upcoming AI features will drive a multi-year iPhone upgrade cycle,” he said. “Early signs are already emerging as our conversations in the supply chain point to upward revision to iPhone 16 builds (by 5-10%) in 2H24. Supply chain data also points to material changes to iPhone 17 internals, suggesting that Apple is looking to do more AI on the device.” Apple shares are up nearly 13% for the year. In the past week, though, they are down 3% amid a broad tech sell-off. AAPL YTD mountain AAPL year to date — Fred Imbert
