Brief Blue streak

Apron shares stir on analyst reports

Blue Apron shares surged 19 percent in midday trading as the banks that took it public released a slew of bullish analyst reports, blowing off fears about a looming competitive threat from Amazon.

Goldman Sachs and seven other banks, all of which were underwriters on the meal delivery company’s initial public offering last month, initiated seemingly upbeat coverage on Blue Apron Monday as the 25-day quiet period on publishing research expired.

Still, the average 12-month price target for Blue Apron is $9.35, according to 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News — 65 cents below the company’s $10 IPO.

Goldman Sachs called Blue Apron the “leading investment in a largely venture stage category” and awarded the company with an $11 price target — just $1 above the $10 IPO price that was set by Goldman’s bankers in late June.

The seeming support from Wall Street sent shares soaring to $7.75, but they fell back to $7.41 at the close, a gain of 13 percent.

Goldman said it predicts 27 percent revenue growth for Blue Apron, while acknowledging competition it faces from other meal delivery companies such as Hello Fresh and Plated.

The bank, which advised Amazon on its acquisition of Whole Foods, did not cite Amazon as a risk to Blue Apron.

That’s despite growing jitters about the Amazon threat — stoked last week by the news that Amazon has launched a meal-kit delivery service and filed for numerous trademarks in the space — that have helped send Blue Apron shares tumbling by as much as a third since their June 29 debut.

Blue Apron may reach its $10 IPO price again, provided it can “consistently improve convenience, price and selection for customers” in light of the “major negative overhang” of Amazon’s moves into the space, RBC Capital Markets, another Blue Apron underwriter, said Monday.

Blue Apron has only one sell rating, from Northcoast Research, which initiated coverage with a $2 price target two weeks ago.

It’s not even been a month since the IPO and Blue Apron CEO Matthew Salzberg has got to be feeling as if the company’s stock ticker APRN has morphed into a famous pain pill.