Best Buy analysts not 'under the influence'
Wolfe Research analyst Aram Rubinson hears from naysayers that Best Buy stores are too big and there are too many of them but he upgraded his rating on Best Buy Co. to "outperform"on Oct. 30. Rubinson wrote in a research note he is upgrading the Richfield-based consumer electronics retailer because he thinks the stock is cheap. Rubinson listed a handful of reasons for his optimism, including management, better pricing, and less pressure from Amazon.
A couple of days later he was defending his upgrade after hearing feedback from investors and wrote in an update, "While some have questioned whether we were 'under the influence' when we made the decision to upgrade, it was a conscious decision." Rubinson put a 12-month price target of $40 on Best Buy stock and added, "We think there is a good chance $40 is only the first stop."
Imation Sales dip a small victory
Imation Corp. has reported 25 straight quarters of declining revenue as it looks to evolve from a seller of its legacy magnetic tape and optical media data-storage products. So a quarter where sales didn't fall as fast as anticipated is greeted positively.
On Tuesday, Imation reported third-quarter revenue of $175 million, down 8 percent from the third quarter last year. Only three analysts cover Imation and two offered revenue estimates for the quarter that expected sales around $159 million.
Eric Martinuzzi, an analyst with Lake Street Capital Markets, wrote, "Few investors are excited by contracting revenue. However, Imation's third-quarter 9 percent revenue decline is a small victory compared to quarters one and two, when revenue declined 20 percent and 16 percent, respectively."
Patrick Kennedy
