Topeka Upgrades Curtiss-Wright

Topeka upgraded Curtiss-Wright Corp. CW from Hold to Buy Monday and raised its price target from $72 to $80.

The analyst note was issued as “the Company reclassified several non-core businesses as assets held for sale along with its recent earnings release.” The firm noted that strategic initiatives would be fast tracked with the planned divestitures.

According to the note, this decision “increases its operating margin by 80 basis points, as well as, its longer-term earnings power. While this resulted in a reduction in 2014 EPS guidance, [Topeka believed] it is further evidence management could reach its operating margin targets prior to 2018.”

While the firm lowered its EPS estimate, it raised the price target based on the assumption of “higher longer-term earnings power, and with a greater sense the operating margin target initiatives will be reached early.”

Curtiss-Wright recently traded at $70.76, up 2.2 percent.