(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Monday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) Monday kicked off with an upgrade to a coffee stock and a downgrade to a doughnut name. JPMorgan upgraded Dutch Bros to overweight, citing recent measures to improve liquidity. The bank also lowered its rating on Krispy Kreme to neutral, in part citing “execution” risks. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. 5:47 a.m. ET: Jefferies upgrades Six Flags Investors should get in on shares of Six Flags Entertainment due to the company’s recently announced merger with Cedar Fair, according to Jefferies. Ahead of the merger, which is expected to close next year , Jefferies lifted shares of Six Flags to buy from hold. The updated price target of $32, raised from $25, corresponds to a 35% upside from the stock’s Friday closing price of $23.70. The Cedar Fair management team is expected to run the combined company in a C-corp structure, while the Six Flags CEO and CFO will lead the transition. “FUN management has achieved more consistent execution, which should translate well to SIX rich asset based structure,” wrote analyst David Katz. He noted that the new company will also have a broader geographic coverage across North America. “Assuming the combined company can achieve its targets, the implied value to SIX holders is $30-50,” the analyst added. — Lisa Kailai Han 5:42 a.m. ET: JPMorgan downgrades Krispy Kreme JPMorgan lowered its rating on the doughnut chain to neutral from overweight, maintaining its $13 per share price target. That forecast is just below where the stock closed on Friday. Analyst John Ivankoe noted that, while the stock is outperforming the S & P 500 year to date, and the company has global brand recognition, there have been execution issues. “We can say through experience that execution has not always been consistent in terms of every package containing product made in the past 24 hours which is actually an issue as the “Krispy Kreme perfection famously fades by the hour/day,” he noted. Still, “the underlying appeal of Krispy Kreme is enormous, and of course there is only one authentic Krispy Kreme doughnut.” Year to date, shares are up 26%. DNUT YTD mountain DNUT in 2023 — Fred Imbert 5:42 a.m. ET: JPMorgan lifts Dutch Bros to overweight, sees 26% upside ahead JPMorgan thinks it’s time for investors to bet on coffee chain Dutch Bros . The bank upgraded the stock to overweight from neutral, lifting its December 2024 price target to $35 from $30. This implies a 26% increase from Friday’s close. As a catalyst, analyst John Ivankoe specifically pointed to the company’s recent liquidity improvements. “The company completed ~$345m primary equity raise on September 7 which added ~8% to shares outstanding but allowed net debt/ebitda (incl. capital leases) to drop from 4.4x to ~2.0x and provide substantial available liquidity to the company,” he wrote. The analyst added: “New labor investments focusing on shop managers is not a surprise as this partly closes the gap vs peers in addition to compensating for increased responsibilities within the ‘people pipeline.'” Shares of Dutch Bros added 3.4% in premarket trading. BROS 1D mountain BROS rises — Lisa Kailai Han
