Thomson Reuters Drops Sharply as Target Cut Strains Grade E Stock

• Our read: Thomson Reuters Corporation Common Shares is graded E by EasyAlpha while 72.2% of 18 analyst ratings are buys across the top 1,000 U.S. companies, pairing a resilient debt load with a deteriorating price trend.
• The day: Shares fell 6.5% to close at $98.81 on Tuesday, September 8 after an analyst lowered its price target.
• Watching: Whether the price trend finds support above the 52-week low of $75.78.

Shares of Thomson Reuters Corporation Common Shares (TRI) fell sharply on Tuesday, September 8, closing -6.5% at $98.81 on 1.2x average volume. The immediate catalyst was an analyst decision to lower their price target from $140 to $130 while maintaining an overweight rating. The revised target spurred fresh selling across a stock that has struggled to find footing throughout the year.

The single-session drop deepened a prolonged slide. The stock is -7.9% over the past week and -25.1% so far this year, leaving the price 41.0% below its 52-week high of $167.53. Even after the decline, the shares remain above their 52-week low of $75.78.

Wall Street analysts remain broadly constructive on the company. Most analysts maintain buy ratings on the stock, with an average price target of $122.29 sitting 23.8% above Tuesday's close. EasyAlpha's quantitative assessment offers a very different perspective. EasyAlpha grades TRI an E, down from its previous grade of B, ranking it in the weakest tier among industry peers across the top 1,000 U.S. companies. In historical testing, companies graded A or B have shown stronger fundamentals and lower risk of major drawdowns than companies graded D or E.

In the company's profile, price trend stands as the primary watch item, while debt load remains the strongest area. The business delivered quarterly revenue growth of +9.5% year over year, and the shares trade at 22.0 times forward estimates with a 2.3% dividend yield. Even so, those financial strengths have not yet halted the stock's persistent downward momentum.