UPDATE: Piper Jaffray Upgrades Informatica to Overweight; Worst Is Behind

Piper Jaffray raised its rating on Informatica INFA from Neutral to Overweight while increasing its price target from $28 to $36. Piper Jaffray noted, "After more than two years on the sidelines, we are upgrading INFA shares to Overweight and raising our price target to $36 from $28. 1) Industry contacts suggest the worst of INFA's European execution issues, which have been the central issue, are now behind the company and Europe is unlikely to hurt it again in Q4; 2) Whereas our last two CIO surveys foreshadowed tough times for INFA in 2012, our current CIO survey shows stabilized INFA spending plans for 2013; 3) Shares have declined 52% since July 2011, and now trade at a reduced multiple of 16.6x EV/2013 EPS versus 46.3x EV/2012 EPS at their peak, creating an asymmetrical risk profile whether standalone or in a takeout scenario; 4) estimates have been cut materially twice and, we believe, are largely derisked." Informatica closed at $29.36 on Thursday.