B. Riley Financial Initiates Coverage on Nokia (NYSE:NOK)

Key Points

• B. Riley Financial initiated coverage of Nokia with a “buy” rating and a $15 price target, implying approximately 47.9% upside from the reported $10.14 share price.
• Nokia’s analyst consensus remains positive, with an overall “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $14.12; recent upgrades included JPMorgan’s increase to $21 and Danske’s move to “buy.”
• Nokia recently exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.08 versus the $0.07 consensus, while revenue rose 8.4% year over year to $5.50 billion, slightly below estimates.

Analysts at B. Riley Financial assumed coverage on shares of Nokia (NYSE:NOK - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Briefing.com reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $15.00 price target on the technology company's stock. B. Riley Financial's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 47.91% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Nokia in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Northland Securities set a $20.00 target price on Nokia in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Nokia from $14.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Danske raised Nokia from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Nokia in a research report on Friday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $14.12.

Nokia Stock Up 3.1%

Shares of Nokia stock opened at $10.14 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.23 billion, a PE ratio of 72.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.21. Nokia has a 52-week low of $4.62 and a 52-week high of $17.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.11.

Nokia (NYSE:NOK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. Nokia had a net margin of 3.49% and a return on equity of 9.83%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.04 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Nokia will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Nokia

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. J2 Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Nokia by 2.0% in the first quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc now owns 68,204 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares in the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC boosted its stake in Nokia by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 11,730 shares of the technology company's stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 1,321 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Nokia by 14.0% in the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 12,081 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Nokia by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 14,704 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,591 shares during the period. Finally, Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Nokia by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 30,394 shares of the technology company's stock worth $197,000 after acquiring an additional 1,645 shares during the period. 5.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Nokia News

Here are the key news stories impacting Nokia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft partnership expands Nokia’s data offering: Nokia said it will work with Microsoft to provide telecommunications operators with expanded data capabilities. The collaboration strengthens Nokia’s position in telecom software, cloud connectivity and AI-related infrastructure, and was the primary catalyst for the latest move higher. Nokia Shares Jump as Microsoft Partnership Expands Data Offering
• Positive Sentiment: AI-RAN momentum is broadening: Nokia is conducting AI-RAN trials with eight operators across four regions. The trials could help the company capture spending as carriers use artificial intelligence to improve network performance, efficiency and automation. Nokia Advances AI-RAN Adoption Across Global Operator Trials
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and media support added to the bullish tone: Rosenblatt Securities initiated coverage with a Buy/Strong Buy rating and a $15 price target, implying substantial upside from the reported $10.14 level. Jim Cramer also expressed a favorable view of Nokia and recommended buying the shares. Nokia Analyst Begins Coverage on a Bullish Note
• Positive Sentiment: Commercial wins reinforce the networking opportunity: Telxius selected Nokia’s 800G coherent pluggable technology to expand capacity and improve efficiency for cloud, AI and data-center traffic. Nokia also announced a UK defense collaboration and a Spanish deployment of Deepfield Defender DDoS protection, providing evidence of demand across optical networking, security and government markets. Telxius Boosts Global Network Capacity and Efficiency
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors still face execution and valuation risk: Nokia’s AI-RAN trials and partnerships may take time to generate material revenue, while the strong year-to-date advance increases the risk of profit-taking if commercial adoption or earnings growth disappoints.

About Nokia

Nokia Corporation is a Finland-based technology company that provides communications and networking equipment, software, and related services to telecommunications operators, enterprises, governments, and other organizations worldwide. Its offerings support the design, deployment, management, and modernization of fixed and mobile communications networks.

The company's business includes mobile network infrastructure, radio access networks, core networks, cloud networking, broadband access, optical networking, IP routing, data-center networking, and network automation.

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