Pinterest ( NYSE: PINS ) shares gave up 2% in pre-market trading Friday as MKM Partners analyst Rohit Kulkarni cut his rating on the social-information sharing company in large part due to cautious comments about online advertising.
Kulkarni lowered his opinion of Pinterest ( PINS ) to neutral from buy after a survey of advertising agencies suggested "marginally negative" prospects for the company, as oppowng to the likes of Meta's ( META ) Facebook and Instagram, YouTube ( GOOG ) and Snap ( SNAP ). Kulkarni said the survey results imply "a potential market share loss amidst a somewhat weak as [spending] market" in the first half of this year.
Kulkarni also said he was "cautious" about Pinterest's ( PINS ) monthly average users [MAUs] in the fourth quarter of 2022, and what he called the "implied" acceleration in fourth-quarter revenue that Pinterest ( PINS ) previously gave.
While Kulkarni cut his rating on Pinterest's ( PINS ) stock, he left his price target unchanged at $27 a share.
Wall Street analysts have a consensus buy rating on Pinterest's ( PINS ) stock, as do Seeking Alpha authors. However, Seeking Alpha's Quant System, which historically outperforms the stock market, agrees with Kulkarni and gives Pinterest ( PINS ) shares a rating of hold.
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Pinterest shares start Friday in the red as MKM cuts rating to neutral