Under Armour Recovers Losses Thanks to S&P Inclusion, Stifel Upgrade

Shares of Under Armour (NYSE: UA) are recovering losses from Thursday's 7.3 percent drop on earnings thanks to an upgrade from Stifel Nicolaus and news the stock will be included in the S&P 500. Shares are higher by 1.5 percent.

Analyst Jim Duffy upgraded the shares from Hold to Buy and announced a $65 price target, which represents 26 percent upside from current levels.

The upgrade is based on:

• Accelerating 1Q revenue growth despite the challenging U.S. retail backdrop (+36% y/y vs. +35% y/y in 4Q).
• Notable evidence of building traction in footwear (+41% vs. +25% in FY13).
• International growth (+79% vs. +42% in FY13).

Duffy credits Thursday's decline to “a reaction to guidance which implied deceleration in revenue growth across the remaining quarters in FY14, reiterated plans to reinvest in SG&A, and revised the tax rate outlook higher due to more investment/less profit from international.”

The Stifel analyst is not as concerned and believes, “tangible opportunities for growth in the U.S. sporting goods channel and DTC provide good visibility to consensus estimates for FY14.”