Bulls And Bears Of The Week: IBM, Microsoft, Tesla And More

Benzinga has examined the prospects for many investor favorite stocks over the past week.

Bullish calls included a software leader and a discount airline.

Bearish calls included an electric vehicle giant and a cult food stock.

The major U.S. indexes end last week with marginal gains again, led by the Nasdaq's nearly 2% increase. A new earnings season kicked off with mixed results from the big banks, and the week saw the phase-one trade deal with China signed as well. Also, the next phase of presidential impeachment process has begun.

Benzinga continues to examine the prospects for many of the stocks most popular with investors. The following are just a few of this past week's most bullish and bearish posts that are worth another look.

Several large options traders were mostly bullish on Microsoft Corporation MSFT this past week, according to Wayne Duggan's "Microsoft Sees Bullish Option Activity As Stock Hits New All-Time High." How much more upside is there?

"Morgan Stanley Names Occidental Petroleum A Top Pick For 2020" by Priya Nigam points out that Occidental Petroleum Corporation OXY could maintain a best-in-class dividend yield, among other things.

Tyree Gorges's "5 Reasons To Invest In Spirit Airlines Stock" takes a look at why two analysts are so bullish on ultra-low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines Incorporated SAVE ahead of its fourth-quarter report, due in early February.

In Shanthi Rexaline's "Wells Fargo Sees 30% Upside In Pinterest Shares, Says 'Fundamentals Remain On Solid Footing'," see some ongoing catalysts for Pinterest Inc PINS.

For additional bullish calls, also have a look at "Pro Investor Says Luckin Coffee More Than Just A Popular Coffee Brand" and "Cord Cutters Haven't Killed The Cable Industry — It's Bringing Them Their Broadband."

Bears

In "Tesla $93B Valuation: Does A Great Product Equate To A Great Stock?" Tom Meilleur asks whether Tesla Inc TSLA has such a strong competitive advantage as to merit its valuation premium.

Priya Nigam's "Morgan Stanley Downgrades IBM, Says Revenue Growth Slowing" discusses why even with synergies from the Red Hat acquisition, long-term revenue growth at IBM IBM is now less likely.

"Wells Fargo Analyst Says Beyond Meat's Stock Has Downside To $72" by Jayson Derrick examines why Beyond Meat Inc BYND shares could retreat more than 30%, according to one top analyst.

NVIDIA Corporation NVDA is not a compelling buying opportunity. So says "Nvidia Analyst Says Chipmaker Lacks Earnings Potential To Justify Lofty Valuation" by Shanthi Rexaline.

Be sure to check out "Boeing's 737 Max Crisis Could Impact US GDP Growth In 2020: Mnuchin" and "UBS Swipes Left On Match, Finds Valuation Unattractive" for additional bearish calls.

At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.

Keep up with all the latest breaking news and trading ideas by following Benzinga on Twitter.