Recent analyst actions include notable rating changes for Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM), Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT). Seeking Alpha analysts placed upgrades on both QCOM and BRK.B while also tagging shares of AAPL and MSFT with downgrades.
Upgrades
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM): Upgrade to Buy by JR Research. The analyst cites Qualcomm’s convincing breakout from consolidation and renewed optimism for its diversification efforts, particularly in AI PCs and automotive partnerships.
- “I think the time for me to reassess my proposition on Qualcomm is propitious, since the stock remains far below the highs it scaled back in the middle of 2024. … Qualcomm appears to be making headway into its automotive growth vector, as the company has inked potentially significant partnerships with Google and BMW, underscoring the credibility of its automotive tech stack.”
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B): Upgrade by The Value Portfolio. The analyst highlights Berkshire’s strategic positioning to leverage its $140B energy business and substantial cash reserves to capitalize on datacenter and infrastructure growth opportunities.
- “Berkshire Hathaway Energy has $140 billion in assets and more than $25 billion in annual revenue… The business’ cash and the growth opportunity of the datacenter make it a valuable investment. The company expects load capacity to increase by 9x from the datacenter segment if all requests to connect to the grid were accepted, and it expects 12% total retail load growth per year if it were to accept all these.”
Downgrades
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL): Downgrade Buy to Hold by Johnny Zhang, CF. Following a 50% rally since his last rating, the analyst cites stretched valuation, temporary tariff relief uncertainties, and delayed AI monetization as key concerns.
- “After a 50% rally since my last rating, I downgraded Apple Inc. from Buy to Hold, citing stretched valuation and overdone AI optimism. … From an AI monetization perspective, it’s hard to see how Apple Intelligence has significantly pushed their product sales higher. After integrating ChatGPT in 2024, the company recently is in talk with GOOGL about using Gemini to power Siri.”
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT): Downgrade Hold to Sell by Mikhail Fedorov. The analyst cites Microsoft’s overvaluation and fading technological advantage in AI, along with failed attempts to capture Google’s search market and intensifying cloud competition from Amazon and Google.
- “I have decided to change my recommendation to Sell. Now my view is that the company’s shares are overvalued and expectations are too high. And my position is based on the idea that at this point, the company has lost its main advantage, which it had in the last couple of years… I think the company’s shares could fall back to the $450 level, where they were trading a year ago. And at the current price, I think they are overbought.”