Piper Sandler analyst Kevin Barker lowered the firm’s price target on Affirm to $16 from $22 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. Consumer lenders have been under pressure most of 2022 due to the market increasingly pricing in a recession and higher unemployment, Barker tells investors in a research note. However, the sector has seen a near-term bounce due to slowing inflation and the market pricing in less aggressive monetary tightening from the Fed while the labor market has been "incredibly resilient," says the analyst. He believes a reversion to pre-pandemic loss rates combined with net interest margin headwinds from rising deposit betas will "keep a lid" on forward earnings estimates despite near-term trends "holding in okay."
Published first on TheFly
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