UPDATE: Stifel Upgrades DealerTrack Technologies to Buy, Names $50 PT Following Annual NADA Conference

In a report published Monday, Stifel analyst Gur Talpaz upgraded the rating on

from Hold to Buy, and named a $50.00 price target. In the report, Stifel noted, “Over the weekend, we had the chance to attend the annual NADA conference in San Francisco, where we were able to interact with dozens of participants within the auto-dealer industry, including technology vendors, customers, and even a handful of manufacturers. What's become to clear to us is that DealerTrack has established itself as one of the premier technology vendors in the marketplace and is increasingly seen as a thought leader and innovator by customers, including many of the largest domestic auto-groups. We've been on the sidelines on DealerTrack for some time with the notion that while the company has always had a forward-thinking vision for dealership software, it has encountered multiple challenges in its ability to execute and deliver on its stated goals. However, we are now starting to see the company's multitude of investments beginning to pay off, with DealerTrack already delivering parts of an integrated solution. We continue to believe in DealerTrack's vision, but, perhaps more importantly, we are increasingly confident in the company's ability to execute against this vision.” DealerTrack Technologies closed on Friday at $41.07.