UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Upgrades Yahoo! to Buy on Revised Sum of Parts Valuation

Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Yahoo! YHOO from Hold to Buy and established a $25.00 price target. Stifel Nicolaus commented, "The fundamental strength of Alibaba (24% owned by Yahoo!) and Yahoo! Japan, and the aggressive return of capital to shareholders has led us to revise our Sum-of-Parts valuation. We believe at its current buyback rate, Yahoo! should be valued in the mid-$20s before year-end and even higher after the Asian assets are monetized. We do not believe (yet) that the core business can be revived to any meaningful degree. If that happened, it would be further upside. We have upgraded shares from Hold to Buy, and established a $25 target price, implying roughly 27% upside from current levels." Yahoo! closed at $19.76 on Friday.