We’ve wrapped up the first week of April, and it feels like the April Fools’ pranks are still with us. Market headwinds have multiplied and receded, all at once.
Covering the macro situation from banking giant JPMorgan, global market strategist Marko Kolanovic writes: “Equities risk-reward is not as poor as it is currently fashionable to believe... While the exogenous geopolitical crisis continues to present a binary set of outcomes, the activity momentum ahead of this shock was resilient, even accelerating, in all key regions. Labor markets are staying very supportive, COVID headwind in DM is ending, and there is a turn for the better in China policy stance.”
Furthermore, “The Fed repricing might be closer to the end, and headline inflation will mechanically peak soon... The start of Fed tightening should not be seen as a negative for stocks, at least not in the early stages. Post the initial volatility, equities tended to make new all-time highs.”
If there’s hope, then there’s reason to invest, and following that line, JPMorgan's stock analysts have been picking out potential winning equities – in their views, equities that may gain as much 90% from current levels, going forward. We ran the two through TipRanks database to see what other Wall Street's analysts have to say about them. Here are the details.
Akoya Biosciences (AKYA)
First up, Akoya Biosciences, works in the field of spatial biology, or spatial phenotyping. This is the study of tissue imaging, at the cellular level, while keeping individual cells within their spatial context. These visualizations allow researchers to directly see how cells interact and organize with each other, and how they influence or are influenced by disease progression – or how they respond to therapy. In short, spatial phenotyping promises to bring a higher level of resolution to a clinician’s view.
Akoya offers the medical profession – both the research and clinical sides – a full range of solutions for spatial phenotyping, through three novel platforms: PhenoCycle, PhenoImage Fusion and PhenoImager HT. These platforms are designed to meet the needs of clinicians and researchers at the discover, human trial, and translational phases of medical programs.
These technological platforms don’t come cheap, however. Akoya moved to raise capital last year, through an IPO in April. The company priced its offering on April 15, 2021, putting 6.58 million shares on the market at $20 each. When the offering closed, on April 20, the company has sold a total of 7.567 million shares, raising some $151.3 million.
Even though the stock has declined in the past year, the company’s revenues have been rising. Akoya started reporting quarterly financials in Q1 of 2021, and four reports released show the top line gaining steadily, from $12.2 million 1Q21 to $16.2 million $4Q21. That most recent result was up 26% year-over-year.
For the full-year 2021, revenue came in at $54.9 million, for a 29.5% y/y gain. This was driven by a y/y increase of 33% in product revenue, which hit $44.5 million for the year. The company’s services revenue grew 16% y/y and reached $10.4 million.
Among the bulls is JPMorgan's 5-star analyst Julia Qin who takes a bullish stance on AKYA shares. She writes, "We’re encouraged by another solid quarter and continued progress in both research and clinical markets, with the recent ABS launch and upcoming new product cycles in 2022/2023 to further accelerate the deployment of AKYA’s platforms in larger-scale research studies and clinical trials, where AKYA is uniquely positioned with a fit for purpose platform. As a spatial biology pure play, AKYA is ranked among the top three companies expected to be dominant in spatial biology in five years per our recent survey."
These comments support Qin’s Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating on the stock, and her $20 price target implies a substantial one-year upside potential of ~91%.
Some stock can slide in under the radar, only picking up a few analyst reviews. Akoya is one of these – but all three of its recent reviews are positive, giving the company its Strong Buy consensus rating. The shares are selling for $10.45 and their $19 average price target suggests an upside of ~82% for the coming year. (See Akoya stock forecast on TipRanks)
Array Technologies (ARRY)
Next up is Array Technologies, and for this one we’ll switch gears. Specifically, we’ll look at the green economy, where Array produces solar tracking tech for large-scale, utility-grade solar energy projects. This is a vital niche in the solar industry; tracking tech allows the panels to move to the optimal position in relation to the sun, for maximal energy production. Array offers two sets of products, the DuraTrack and the SmarTrack.
The company’s revenues are showing growth recently. The company reported a top line of $219.9 million in 4Q21, up 22% year-over-year – and the second-highest quarterly revenue result since the company went public in October of 2020. Looking at earnings, Array posted net losses in Q3 and Q4 – but for 2021 as a whole, it recorded a net EPS profit of 7 cents. But while that’s still a profit, it compares poorly to the 93 cents per share in the 2020 report.
Array does have the financial resources to weather a period of lower earnings. The company’s cash position improved from 2020 to 2021; it ended ’20 with $108 million in cash on hand, which grew to more than $367 million in liquid assets by the end of 2021.
JPMorgan analyst Mark Strouse, rated 5-stars at TipRanks, takes note of Array’s growth potential, writing: “Guidance assumes ~40% organic growth, approximately aligning with our expectations. The revenue upside is primarily driven by the STI business, where management notes an acceleration in demand, particularly in W. Europe even before the energy price spikes experienced over the past few weeks. The guide assumes a lower than historical average conversion of backlog to deliveries, baking in likely project delays that are occurring across the utility-scale solar industry, though does not assume any potential disruption from the pending AD/CVD investigation. We are increasing our FY22 estimates accordingly…”
To this end, Strouse rates ARRY an Overweight (i.e. Buy) along with a $33 price target that points toward a robust 238% upside for the coming year. (To watch Strouse’s track record, click here)
Among Strouse’s colleagues, rating wise, the bulls are slightly in front. ARRY's Moderate Buy consensus rating is based on 6 Buys and 4 Holds. However, the bulls are out in full force where the average price target is concerned; At $19.90, the analysts expect the stock to change hands for a 91% premium over the next 12 months. (See ARRY stock forecast on TipRanks)
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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
