Weighing in on the markets from investment firm Oppenheimer, chief investment strategist John Stoltzfus believes that despite rough conditions, the market has more fuel left in the tank. Remaining “very bullish on this market,” Stoltzfus’ stance is supported by the fact that trillions of dollars are sitting on the sidelines, as well as the hope that the U.S. will be able to tame the beast that is COVID-19. “You’re going to see money beginning to further move out of the bond market, and it makes all the sense in the world to be positioned in equities,” the strategist noted.Stoltzfus acknowledges that the debate surrounding a second stimulus package, a spike in COVID-19 cases and the U.S. presidential election reflect potential near-term risks, but implies that his previous year-end target for the S&P 500, which landed at 3,500 but was withdrawn due to uncertainty, could still be attainable.Taking Stoltzfus’ outlook and turning it into concrete recommendations, the pros at Oppenheimer are giving three penny stocks a thumbs up. The firm’s analysts project triple-digit upside potential for all three of these tickers that trade for less than $5 per share. Opening up the TipRanks’ database, we’ve pulled the details on these names, to find out what makes them compelling despite their risky nature.STRATA Skin Sciences (SSKN)Bringing decades of experience and innovative skin science technology to the table, STRATA Skin Sciences provides professionals in dermatology, plastics and aesthetics with better solutions. Even though COVID-19 has hampered the company, Oppenheimer believes that at $1.22, shares appear undervalued. Representing the firm, analyst Suraj Kalia acknowledges the COVID-19-related headwinds pressured SSKN in Q2. During the quarter, revenue declined by 49% year-over-year to $4 million. Additionally, recurring revenues, an important measure of system utilization and company strategy, fell 52% year-over-year to $2.8 million.Despite this weak showing, Kalia sees reasons to remain optimistic. Gross domestic recurring billings for July were three times higher than in April. He added, “The company noted that results would have been near 2019 levels ex-hotspots (parts of FL, TX, WA)—impressive given lack of advertising and slightly smaller installed base. Further, several key markets above 2019 levels (despite no DTC ad-driven patient inventory) suggests that SSKN is taking share vs. Biologics."When it comes to SSKN’s installed base, at the end of Q2, the figure came in at 806 systems, down from 838 at the end of Q1. That being said, procedures did ramp up in June and July. Adding to the good news, the company reached a settlement agreement with Ra Medical, ending two years of court battles.To this end, Kalia rates SSKN an Outperform (i.e. Buy) along with a $6 price target. Should his thesis play out, a potential twelve-month gain of 395% could be in the cards. (To watch Kalia’s track record, click here)So, that’s Oppenheimer's view, let’s turn our attention now to rest of the Street: SSKN's 2 Buys and 1 Hold coalesce into a Moderate Buy rating. There’s plenty of upside – 303% to be exact – should the $4.88 average price target be met over the next months. (See SSKN stock analysis on TipRanks)Mustang Bio Inc. (MBIO)With its primary focus in chimeric antigen receptor T-cell, or CAR-T, therapy, Mustang Bio wants to improve the lives of patients. After its recent cash refill, Oppenheimer thinks that the $3.07 share price presents investors with a unique buying opportunity.Writing for the firm, 5-star analyst Mark Breidenbach sees MBIO’s recent equity financing, which yielded $37.2 million in gross proceeds, as a major positive. According to the analyst’s estimates, this move could extend the operational runway into early 2022.In the near-term, MBIO remains committed to kicking off “two trials of MB-107 in X-SCID, and expects the FDA to clear the CMC component of the INDs in Q4.” Breidenbach noted, “Management reiterated guidance to deliver results from both X-SCID studies —in infants and previously-transplanted patients—in 2H22.”Looking more closely at the trials, the first is a ~10-patient Phase 2 study of MB-107 in newly-diagnosed infants, which is currently on hold pending CMC clearance. “The trial will run in parallel with a ~15-patient academic-sponsored study at St. Jude, and management believes results from both studies could be combined to support a future BLA filing,” Breidenbach said.As for the second IND filing, it will evaluate the candidate in previously transplanted X-SCID patients. It should be noted that Breidenbach believes assessing efficacy here will be more difficult than in infants.On top of this, MBIO enrolled the first patients in its Phase 1/2 study of its CD123 CAR-T in AML, MDS and BPDCN. Data, however, isn’t slated for release until 2H21 at the earliest. The dose escalation in the academic-sponsored trial of MB-105, a PSCA-directed CAR T for treating metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), is also progressing right on track. “Impressively, the first patient tested at 100 million cells achieved a 95% PSA reduction with radiographic disease improvement. We could see updated results from the trial in Q1 2021 followed by a company-sponsored IND in Q4 2021,” Breidenbach stated.With everything that MBIO has going for it, it makes sense why Breidenbach left an Outperform (i.e. Buy) rating and $13 price target on the stock. Should the target be met, a twelve-month gain in the shape of a whopping 333% could be in store. (To watch Breidenbach’s track record, click here) Turning now to the rest of the Street, it has been relatively quiet when it comes to other analyst activity. Only one other analyst has posted a recent review, but it was also bullish, so the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy. In addition, the $10 average price target indicates upside potential of 233%. (See Mustang Bio stock analysis on TipRanks)VBI Vaccines (VBIV)Last but not least is VBI Vaccines, which develops cutting-edge vaccines that could potentially address unmet needs in infectious disease and immuno-oncology. As there are multiple potential catalysts on the horizon, Oppenheimer argues that its $3.65 share price reflects an attractive entry point.After updated results from the Phase 1/2a trial evaluating VBI-1901 in refractory glioblastoma were released, 5-star analyst Leland Gershell is even more confident about VBIV’s prospects.In the first-recurrent Phase 2a population, there was “improvement from Stable Disease (SD) to a confirmed durable Partial Response (PR) in one patient with this highly aggressive malignancy.” The analyst is now looking forward to six-month OS data at SNO in November, and initial efficacy with GlaxoSmithKline's liposomal AS01B adjuvant, with this arm currently enrolling.Gershell added, “We have comprehensively revised our financial model to better reflect our view of VBI's prospects as it advances this and other pipeline assets (HepB treatment vaccine, CMV vaccine) as well as SciB-Vac, any/all of which we believe could drive industry partnerships.” He now assigns distinct value contribution to VBI-1901 and VBI-2601, and estimates un-risk-adjusted year 5 sales of $200 million and $475 million, respectively.Pre-clinical data on its pan-coronavirus vaccine candidate, VBI-2901, in Q3, and its possible clinical entry in Q4 also reflect potential catalysts that could push shares higher, in Gershell’s opinion. It’s also important to mention that its strong showing year-to-date “reflects a growing appreciation for VBIV's prospects,” and April financing should support its operations into 2022.In line with his optimistic take, Gershell rates VBIV an Outperform (i.e. Buy). Gershell's $8 price target conveys his confidence in VBIV’s ability to climb 128% higher in the next twelve months. (To watch Gershell’s track record, click here) What do other analysts have to say? As the stock has received 4 Buy ratings and zero Holds or Sells in the last three months, the word on the Street is that VBIV is a Strong Buy. At $6.50, the average price target brings the upside potential to 85%. (See VBIV stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
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(Bloomberg) — With diners staying away from restaurants, the owner of Chili’s and Maggiano’s is reporting rapid growth of a new service to deliver chicken wings under a different brand name.It’s Just Wings is bringing in more than $3 million in sales a week since its launch in June, according to Wyman Roberts, chief executive officer of parent company Brinker International Inc. The brand, delivered to customers through a partnership with DoorDash Inc., utilizes the kitchens of 1,050 Chili’s and Maggiano’s locations.“Sales have grown nicely,” Roberts said on a conference call after the company reported quarterly earnings. “It’s met or exceeded our expectation pretty much on every turn.”Brinker is capitalizing on the so-called ghost kitchen concept, where restaurants forgo dining rooms and cater exclusively to customers eating away, as the pandemic makes expensive dining-room real estate more difficult to pencil. It can be a boon for restaurants looking to cut costs, particularly at a time when health concerns and capacity limits put a strain on operations.The challenges showed up in Brinker’s performance at physical locations. Comparable restaurant sales fell 38.6% in the fourth quarter from a year ago.Brinker shares rose as much as 9.2% Wednesday in New York.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares are up 6% on Wednesday after the company announced a 5-for-1 stock split on Tuesday afternoon. The stock split will be implemented after the market close Aug. 31.Companies with relatively high stock prices like Tesla often implement stock splits to bring their share prices back down to a level that is more affordable for smaller, retail investors.No Value Creation: Tesla's morning rally added $18 billion to the company's market cap despite creating no actual value."The math of it obviously does not create any value. But people think it creates value, so therefore it does," CNBC's Karen Finerman said on Tuesday afternoon. "It's kind of ridiculous, especially since we've seen you can do partial shares now, you can do trading with little or no cost commissions now."Guy Adami said he agreed with Finerman's take."The absurdity of it speaks volumes as to what's going on. I'm going to get atted for this, but I think for a lot of people, they'd rather be long five shares of a $200 stock as opposed to one share of a $1,000 stock. There's an absurdity to that that I can't explain, but I think that's just human nature," Adami said.Wall Street analysts also weighed in on Tesla's split and the subsequent price action.Insatiable Demand: Baird analyst Ben Kallo said investors simply have an appetite for technology stocks with exposure to transportation, renewable energy and software."We believe the stock split is a recognition of the fact that the market is increasingly influenced by individual investors, including those looking to gain exposure to next-generation transportation," Kallo wrote.Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives said the stock split was a smart move by Tesla and that the company's China business is firing on all cylinders."Tesla is following the lead of Apple and ultimately we expect more tech giants to potentially head down this path over the coming months as the parabolic rally in tech/EV names over the past five months has put companies in a position of strength to make such moves," Ives wrote.Morningstar analyst David Whiston said Tesla's share price should theoretically not rise on the split news, but the stock has been on fire since CEO Elon Musk tweeted that Tesla's share price was too high back on May 1."The stock opened at $755 that day and has more than doubled since then before coming back down in recent days, a downward trend the split news will now likely conveniently stop," Whiston wrote.TSLA Ratings And Price Targets: * Baird has a Neutral rating and $1,658 target * Wedbush has a Neutral rating and $1,800 target. * Morningstar has a Sell rating and $751 fair value estimate. * Tesla's stock traded around $1,471.45 per share at time of publication.Related Links:2 Years Since 'Funding Secured' Firestorm, Musk And Tesla Are Flying High Long-Term Investors Prefer Microsoft And Amazon Over Tesla And Facebook, Tech Survey Says Latest Ratings for TSLA DateFirmActionFromTo Aug 2020CitigroupMaintainsSell Jul 2020Morgan StanleyMaintainsUnderweight Jul 2020BernsteinDowngradesMarket PerformUnderperform View More Analyst Ratings for TSLA View the Latest Analyst Ratings See more from Benzinga * 2 Years Since 'Funding Secured' Firestorm, Musk And Tesla Are Flying High * Long-Term Investors Prefer Microsoft And Amazon Over Tesla And Facebook, Tech Survey Says * Survey Shows Engineering Students Want To Work For Elon Musk(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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