Wall Street Zen Upgrades NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ) to Strong-Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded NIQ Global Intelligence to “Strong Buy” from “Buy.” Across analysts, the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $21.36.
• NIQ beat quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $0.30 versus $0.23 expected and revenue of $1.12 billion versus $1.11 billion; revenue grew 6.3% year over year.
• The company raised its FY2026 EPS guidance to $1.16–$1.20 and expects AI to add 0.25–0.5 percentage points to growth in 2027.

NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

NIQ has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group increased their price target on NIQ Global Intelligence from $17.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of NIQ Global Intelligence in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NIQ Global Intelligence from $16.50 to $22.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on NIQ Global Intelligence from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on NIQ Global Intelligence from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $21.36.

NIQ Global Intelligence Price Performance

NYSE:NIQ opened at $19.39 on Friday. NIQ Global Intelligence has a 52 week low of $7.93 and a 52 week high of $21.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $18.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.44. The firm has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.88 and a beta of -0.27.

NIQ Global Intelligence (NYSE:NIQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 12th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.07. NIQ Global Intelligence had a negative net margin of 2.63% and a positive return on equity of 21.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. The company's revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. NIQ Global Intelligence has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.160-1.200 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.430-0.470 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NIQ Global Intelligence will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NIQ Global Intelligence

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new stake in NIQ Global Intelligence in the second quarter valued at about $1,199,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its position in NIQ Global Intelligence by 209.6% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 266,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,491,000 after acquiring an additional 180,372 shares during the last quarter. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd raised its stake in NIQ Global Intelligence by 50.0% during the second quarter. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd now owns 300,000 shares of the company's stock worth $2,805,000 after acquiring an additional 100,000 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in NIQ Global Intelligence by 67.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 715,912 shares of the company's stock worth $8,140,000 after acquiring an additional 287,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in NIQ Global Intelligence by 52.2% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 531,216 shares of the company's stock worth $6,040,000 after acquiring an additional 182,300 shares in the last quarter.

NIQ Global Intelligence News Roundup

Investors following NIQ have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Management raised full-year 2026 EPS guidance to $1.16–$1.20, above the cited $1.04 consensus, and forecast Q4 EPS of $0.43–$0.47 versus estimates of $0.42. Full-year revenue guidance is $4.5 billion, in line with expectations. Article: NIQ Global Raises FY2026 Guidance as Third-Quarter Revenue Grows 6.3% to $1.12 Billion
• Positive Sentiment: The company expects AI to add 0.25–0.5 percentage points to growth in 2027, offering a potential longer-term growth driver. Article: NIQ outlines AI growth contribution in 2027
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised price targets after the results: RBC to $23 and maintained Outperform, Wells Fargo to $22 with Overweight, Barclays to $25 with Overweight, and Needham to $24 with Buy. These revisions signal improved analyst expectations. Article: RBC Raises Price Target on NIQ Global Intelligence

NIQ Global Intelligence Company Profile

NIQ Global Intelligence, Inc. NYSE: NIQ, also known as NielsenIQ, provides consumer and retail intelligence to manufacturers and retailers. Its services include retail measurement, consumer and shopper insights, market research, and data analytics designed to help clients understand purchasing behavior, track product performance, and inform business decisions. The company combines information from retail sales, consumer panels, and other sources to deliver analysis across product categories and markets.

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