Pinterest Has ‘Multiple Tailwinds’

Pinterest (NYSE: PINS) shares are down more than 28.21% this year, but its share price jumped by more than 11% on Tuesday after it was upgraded at Piper Sandler.

Piper Sandler analyst Thomas Champion lifted the stock's rating to Overweight from Neutral, also raising the price target to $30 from $25 per share in a note to clients. 

Champion told investors that he sees “multiple tailwinds” for the company into 2023 as his advertising buyer survey suggested an improved ad product and rising market.

The analyst explained that the data points to better monthly active user trends for Pinterest, while his analysis points to a path to margin expansion ahead. 

“We like the new leadership, investor activism, and we see a buyback coming,” wrote Champion, who added that the lows are likely already priced into the shares.

Despite the Piper Sandler analyst's positivity, The Information reported earlier this month that macroeconomic headwinds have resulted in Pinterestslowing down hiring for the remainder of the year and cutting part of its recruiting team.

A spokesperson for Pinterest told The Information: “We’re closely monitoring the global macroeconomic environment and have decided to slow down our hiring for the remainder of 2022.”

“We made great hires at Pinterest this year and have strong talent in place to support the needs of our business. With less need for hiring support, we’ve made the difficult decision to reduce the size of our recruiting team.”