Analysts Weigh in on Tech Giants Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) and Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NOK) Earnings

By Shira Gonen

Analysts from Oppenheimer and BMO weighed in on Yahoo! Inc. YHOO and Nokia Corporation (ADR) NOK regarding earnings from both companies. While one remains bullish on Yahoo, albeit expressing caution on timing of new initiatives, the other analyst remains bullish on Nokia due to increased synergy from an acquisition.

Yahoo! Inc.

Analyst Jason Helfstein of Oppenheimer weighed in on Yahoo following its earnings release last week. While the company has suffered from legacy and search declines, management provided hopeful commentary about its plans to optimize its functions going forward. The analyst cites management plans to "1) [deploy] higher margin ad-tech solutions to monetize web content, 2) [build] out mobile platforms," and plans regarding "cost restructuring to exit certain business units." According to Helfstein, "the company's consistent efforts on Native, Video and Programmatic ad products are Yahoo's attempt to offset desktop headwinds," though he believes the process could take 9-12 months to complete.

Due to these efforts, Yahoo provided guidance that fell below estimates, partly due to "non-core exits and TIPLA termination." As a result of this weaker guidance and marked challenges, the analyst is lowering his own estimates for revenue and EBITA, which also reflects the Q4 decline in Maven (mobile, video, native, and social) revenue.

On February 9, 2016, the analyst reiterated an Outperform rating on the company but lowered his price target to $40 from $49. Jason Helfstein has a 42% success rate recommending stocks with an average return of 2.1% per recommendation.

According to TipRanks' statistics, out of the 23 analysts who have rated the company in the last 3 months, 12 gave a Buy rating, 1 gave a Sell rating, and 10 remain on the sidelines. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $37.50, marking a 38% upside from current levels.

Nokia Corporation (ADR)

Analyst Tim Long of BMO Capital weighed in on Nokia prior to its 4Q15 earnings, released earlier this morning. The analyst states that the market "overreacted" following Nokia's announcement regarding the Samsung arbitration. The announcement settled the amount Samsung would have to pay Nokia for a 5 year extension to use Nokia patents, which resulted in a run rate of E800 million for its annualized technologies division. However, many believed this number was too low and would negatively impact earnings.

On February 10, 2016, the analyst reiterated an Outperform rating and $10 price target on the stock. He explains, "We believe Nokia will Outperform expectations over the next several years and expect management to find additional synergies and margin improvement opportunities following the recently closed ALU acquisition."

Tim Long has a 34% success rate recommending stocks with an average loss of (0.2%) per recommendation. Out of the 6 analysts who have rated the company in the past 3 months on TipRanks, 4 gave a Buy rating while 2 remain on the sidelines. The average 12-month price target for the stock is $9.47, marking a 63% upside from where shares last closed.