Coty Inc.’s stock was so bad last year, it’s unlikely to get much worse this year.
That may not sound like a ringing endorsement of the beauty-products company, which brands include Covergirl, Clairol and Max Factor, but it’s enough for J.P. Morgan analyst Andrea Teixeira to recommend investors stop selling.
Teixeira raised her rating on the stock to neutral, after being at underweight since March 2017, citing “rock bottom” valuation. Teixeira said a sum-of-the-parts analysis suggests “limited downside from current levels” over the next year.
The stock COTY, +5.30% shot up 5.3% in morning trade Friday, to pace all gainers in the consumer staples sector XLP, +1.81% It has climbed 9.0% so far this year, and has soared 17% since it closed at a record low of $6.11 on Dec. 24.
Coty’s stock was the biggest loser in the S&P 500 index in 2018, as it plunged 67% while the S&P 500 SPX, +3.51% slipped 6.2%. The weakness stemmed from challenges in its consumer beauty segment and from disruptions in the supply chain.
“We believe that new management will rebase expectations for investors within the coming quarters, and unveil a vision for how to drive growth at Coty again,” Teixeira wrote....