Analysts are weighing in on Instagram owner Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), drug stock Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX), and burger chain Shake Shack Inc (NYSE:SHAK). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on shares of FB, NBIX, and SHAK.
Facebook stock is edging lower before the open, despite the company's record-breaking earnings report. CEO Mark Zuckerberg also assured investors the social media firm was doing everything in its power to reduce abuse of the site following backlash from Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election, saying investment in security is much more important than maximizing profits -- and that efforts will "impact our profitability."
A slight pullback from FB shares may not be surprising considering how they rallied into the quarterly event, touching a record high yesterday of $182.90 before closing at $182.66. In fact, the security was technically overbought, given its 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 70.
Still, several analysts have raised their price targets on Facebook stock, with the highest mark coming from Wedbush and RBC at $230. On the other hand, Credit Suisse lowered its price target to the same level. This group was already extremely bullish on the equity, with all 24 brokerage firms tracking FB saying it's a "buy" or "strong buy."
Up 20% in pre-market trading, Neurocrine Biosciences stock could hit record levels today, thanks to the company's impressive earnings results. Bullish analyst notes have been pouring in, with H.C. Wainwright setting a price target of $139 -- more than double yesterday's close of $60.93. The shares were already up more than 57% year-to-date, recently taking a strong bounce off the 50-day moving average. Now, a short-squeeze situation could lead to even more gains, since short interest represents roughly 10% of NBIX's float.
Shake Shack stock is pacing for a strong open -- up 4.4% in electronic trading -- after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings. This would just be more of the same for the shares, which have been barreling higher since their September low, outpacing the S&P 500 Index (SPX) by almost 16 percentage points during the past two months to close yesterday at $37.15.
Meanwhile, no fewer than six price-target hikes have come through since the results hit, including SunTrust Robinson's call of $50 from $48. This might not be the last of bullish analyst attention for SHAK, either. The equity is ready to close in on its average 12-month price target of $38.90, and the vast majority of analyst rankings are "hold" or "strong sell." As such, the door is wide open for additional price-target increases and/or upgrades moving forward.