These reports, excerpted and edited by Barron's, were issued recently by investment and research firms. The reports are a sampling of analysts' thinking; they should not be considered the views or recommendations of Barron's. Some of the reports' issuers have provided, or hope to provide, investment-banking or other services to the companies being analyzed.

TE Connectivity -- TEL-NYSE Outperform -- $133.45 on April 23 by Evercore ISI TE Connectivity reported impressive upside to March-quarter results with revenue/earnings per share of $4.1 billion/$2.10 versus the Street at $4 billion/$1.96. Notably, revenues were up 4% year over year (5% organically) on better-than-expected results across the board. Transportation sales saw a modest decline (-2% organic; auto was flat), while Industrial sales grew by double digits (16% organic, artificial-intelligence-driven but also broader recovery).

TE guided June-quarter revenue and earnings per share of $4.3 billion/$2.06 ahead of Street expectations ($4.1 billion/$2.03), despite some expected tariff impacts.

We estimate earnings before interest and taxes margins to be slightly down Q/Q, with earnings per share impacted by interest (from the Richards Manufacturing acquisition) and tax headwinds (about six cents)....TE expects tariffs to be about a 3% headwind to sales, though it can mitigate the roughly $130 million sales headwind through sourcing changes (one-third) and price increases (two-thirds). Price target: $165.

Lithia Motors -- LAD-NYSE Buy -- $295.66 on April 23 by Seaport Research Partners Lithia Motors reported first-quarter 2025 adjusted EPS of $7.66 ($7.93 excluding a $0.27 headwind from an unrealized loss in its investment in Pinewood Technologies), which compares to our consensus forecasts of $7.71....

We view this as a strong quarter, testament to the diversity and flexibility of the franchise dealer model. To that point: The first quarter is a seasonally weak one, and yet the company was able to generate $202 million in net income -- a decline of just $5 million from a seasonally strong fourth-quarter in 2024.

Further, investors should be reassured that Lithia increased its overall fiscal-year 2025 earnings outlook: Although it trimmed the top end of its outlook for used and Finance & Insurance graphic processing units, it increased the midpoint of the range for new GPUs and aftersales margins.

Roughly speaking, despite all of the uncertainty/concern over potential tariff impacts, this continues to support our $36-plus EPS forecast, which implies a price/earnings ratio of just eight times at current trading levels. Price target: $465.

Travel + Leisure -- TNL-NYSE Neutral -- $42.64 on April 23 by Mizuho Travel + Leisure reported consolidated Ebitda of $202 million (versus the Street at $200 million). Vacation ownership interest, or VOI, trends were better than feared, driven by healthy close rates. We were braced for volume per guest, or VPG, compression for Travel + Leisure and the industry, so this was a positive surprise. Investors may pick at higher provision, but given the macro backdrop and overall valuations (close to trough), results were compelling....

We believe that the first quarter was better than feared, and forward trends (both close rates/provision) are stable/improving. We maintain our Neutral rating and revise our price target to $63 from $64.

Tesla -- TSLA-Nasdaq Buy -- $237.97 on April 23 by Benchmark Equity Research Tesla reported first-quarter 2025 revenue of $19.3 billion versus our estimate of $24.9 billion and consensus of $20.1 billion. Gross margin came in at 16%, compared to our estimate of 12% and consensus of 16%. The current market outlook remains clouded as the industry navigates tariffs.

We believe that our thesis remains intact with new products on track for this year, the launch of the robo-taxi business in June, and the continued development of Optimus robots [now potentially delayed by China's rare-earth minerals restrictions] providing long-term upside. We believe that investors should look beyond the short-term road bumps and focus on the breadth of upcoming opportunities. Tesla also has the least exposure to tariffs, with 85% of its vehicles compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and we think these reasons create a compelling investment case at current stock levels. We reiterate our Buy rating and $350 price target.

Apple -- AAPL-Nasdaq Outperform -- $193.16 on April 23 by Evercore ISI With sectoral tariffs that are likely to get implemented, a scenario we think could likely end up happening is for tariffs to be placed on individual components based on country of origin versus where the entire assembly is done....In this scenario, we think the impact to Apple would be more manageable, given that our math implies the effective tariff rate on Apple products would be about 16%.....

While we concede that tariff uncertainty remains high, we think it important to think through scenarios because a lot of the numbers floating out there seem to focus on worst-case scenario, and the impact to Apple could end up being less than feared. We maintain our Outperform rating and $250 price target.

Check Point Software Technologies -- CHKP-Nasdaq Neutral -- $212.31 on April 22 by BTIG Check Point reported solid first-quarter results this morning, with upside on billings and product revenue and in line operating income....Headline numbers were encouraging, particularly given current economic headwinds....We think the print will be viewed positively, particularly by those looking for defensive stories in the current volatile environment.

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April 25, 2025 16:42 ET (20:42 GMT)

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