Investing.com — This is your Pro Recap of the top Wall Street analyst takeaways from the past week.
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American Airlines
What happened? On Monday, Raymond James upgraded American Airlines (NASDAQ: ) to Outperform with a price target of $24.
*TLDR: New deal with Citi card (2026 Citi moves rest of Barclays AAL customer book to LINK branded credit card) to increase fee.
What is the whole story? Raymond James upgraded American Airlines from Market Perform to Outperform, citing an attractive risk-reward profile and above-consensus forecasts. Analysts highlighted improved revenue prospects, competitive capacity deployment and better engagement with corporate clients. American raised its 4Q24 RASM guidance to 0-1% and adjusted EPS from $0.25-0.50 to $0.55-0.75.
A new 10-year co-branding agreement with Citi, effective in 2026, is expected to increase cash fees by ~10% annually, putting American on track to meet Delta’s long-term goal by 2030. Despite pre-revenue , the deal positions American for sustainable earnings growth.
Outperform Raymond James means “The security is expected to appreciate and outperform the S&P/TSX Composite Index over the next 12-18 months.”
Vertex
What happened? On Tuesday, DA Davidson initiated coverage on Vertex (NASDAQ: ) at Buy with a price target of $62.
*TLDR: Analysts at DA Davidson backed Vertex’s sustained value accumulation. Analysts praised Vertex’s growth and competitive strength.
What is the whole story? Analysts at DA Davidson believe that Vertex has demonstrated multiple attributes of sustainable value accumulation and compounding per share. They highlighted the presence of the company in a market characterized by stable growth and favorable disruptive catalysts. According to analysts, Vertex’s competitive moat was strengthened by its unmatched “benchmark” and its cost infrastructure was conducive to margin expansion.
Furthermore, analysts praised Vertex’s management team for their disciplined capital allocation and aligned incentives, which further supported the company’s growth trajectory. These combined factors underscored analysts’ positive outlook on Vertex’s long-term value and performance.
Buy on DA Davidson means “It is expected to produce a total return of over 15% on a risk-adjusted basis over the next 12-18 months.”
Alphabet
What happened? On Thursday, JMP Securities downgraded Alphabet (NASDAQ: ) to Market Perform
*TLDR: JMP Securities downgraded Alphabet due to antitrust fines. Analysts have been waiting for legal clarity on Google’s search distribution in the US.
What is the whole story? JMP Securities downgraded Alphabet due to the potential impact of antitrust penalties on Google (NASDAQ: ) distribution and search revenue in the US. Analysts expected a final ruling by August 2025 to be the main focus for investors, limiting multiple spreads despite enforcement likely to be years away due to appeals.
Analysts expect a “harsh” court ruling, given the failure of European regulators to influence the search market, and have comfortably stepped aside after a 37% return in 2024, awaiting greater legal clarity before turning positive again, and have seen shares as fair valued.
Market Performance at JMP Securities means “Citizens JMP Securities, LLC expects the stock price to be in line with the Russell 3000® Index over the next 12 months.”
Block Inc.
What happened? On Friday, Raymond James upgraded Block Inc (NYSE: ) to Outperform with a price target of $115.
*TLDR: RaymondJames upgraded Block on confidence in 2025. Analysts bullish on GPV seller acceleration and growth.
What is the whole story? Raymond James upgraded Block after analyzing the components of Seller GPV, expressing confidence in the acceleration in 2025. They considered seller GPV the most important metric, predicting that growth could return to double digits in 2025 due to easier comparisons, improved distribution, international expansion and product innovation.
Despite acknowledging the stagnation in Cash App user growth, analysts were optimistic about maintaining gross profit growth through increased engagement within the existing user base. They had high confidence in Seller GPV’s acceleration, felt the valuations were well positioned and viewed the stock as a bargain due to its growth potential.
Outperform Raymond James means “(MO2) The security is expected to appreciate and outperform the S&P/TSX Composite Index over the next 12-18 months.”
