YPF upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded YPF to Equal Weight from Underweight with a price target of $22, up from $10.50. The stock has been among the preferred vehicles for investors to play the macro normalization in Argentina and had a strong rally in 2023, notes the analyst. The firm’s new price target offers “limited upside,” but the bull case “could be attractive for those with a more bullish view on the macro normalization path,” says the analyst, adding that the firm believes YPF is unlikely to generate positive free cash flow in 2024-25 and prefers exposure to other energy stocks in the region.