Co-CEOs Neil Blumenthal and Dave Gilboa of Warby Parker at the New York Stock Exchange on Sept. 29, 2021.
Source: NYSE
Check out the companies making headlines before the bell.
Warby Parker — Warby Parker jumped about 4% after Evercore ISI upgraded the eyeglass retailer to an outperform rating, saying shares could rally more than 50% as the company’s margins and revenue growth reaccelerate.
Eli Lilly, Point Biopharma — Shares of Point Biopharma popped 85% after Eli Lilly announced it would buy the cancer therapy maker for $12.50 a share in cash, or roughly $1.4 billion.
HP — Shares added 2.5% after being double-upgraded by Bank of America to buy from underperform. The bank expects improving fundamentals for the PC maker, with free cash flow hitting a bottom in 2023.
McCormick — Shares of the spice maker slipped about 3% before the bell. McCormick reported earnings of 65 cents per share, excluding items, for the recent quarter on revenue of $1.68 billion. That came roughly in line with the EPS of 65 cents and $1.7 billion in revenue expected by analysts polled by StreetAccount.
Warner Music Group — Warner added 3.5% after UBS upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. UBS said the company should be a long-term beneficiary of trends in the music industry.
Airbnb — Airbnb shares slipped 3% in the premarket after KeyBanc Capital Markets downgraded the short-term home-rental stock as tailwinds from the post-pandemic boom in travel demand ease.
Fiverr International — Shares gained 2.8% after Roth MKM upgraded Fiverr International to buy from neutral. The Wall Street firm is “incremental positive” on the stock, citing a freelancer survey that supports Fiverr’s leading position among gig workers.
Emerson Electric — The industrial giant dipped 1% in premarket trading after UBS downgraded the stock to neutral from buy, citing the company’s valuation and limited upside. The firm increased its price target, however.
— CNBC’s Alex Harring, Sarah Min, Michelle Fox and Pia Singh contributed reporting.
