Analysts slashed their price targets for

Lululemon Athletica Inc.

fast and furious as the athleisurewear maker continues to struggle with a slowdown in the United States brought on by

Donald Trump

‘s

tariffs

and other policies. Meanwhile, a well-known investing advisor has some suggestions for investors with the

gold

bug as the price of bullion continues to climb and TD Securities shares three ideas analysts are chuffed about.

Stock of the week: Lululemon Athletica Inc.

Vancouver-based Lululemon Athletica Inc. has been a Canadian investing success story, but a bad 2025 got even worse this week after it released earnings that showed the company is struggling in the face of slowing demand and Donald Trump’s tariffs. Shares were trading down more than 18 per cent in New York Friday following the results, hitting levels not seen since the early days of the pandemic and bringing year-to-date losses to more than 50 per cent. The plunge led some analysts to dramatically lower price targets. John Kernan at TD Securities slashed his price target to US$220 from US$298, noting that much of the earnings hit —

net income of US$370.9 million during its second quarter, down from US$392.9 million a year earlier

— could be sourced to the clothingmaker’s reliance on the U.S. de minimis rule, which allowed goods worth less than US$800 to cross the border duty-free. Last week, Trump terminated that loophole. “We are disappointed we missed this and that the loophole was being used to this extent without more disclosure on risk,” he said, estimating that approximately 66 per cent of U.S.-bound e-commerce was sent from Canada under the de minimis exemption. Kernan said the financial benefits amounted to 250 basis points to the company gross margin, which now appear to have evaporated. Other cuts to price targets came in fast and furious: Truist Securities cut its target to US$170 from US$290, Telsey Advisory Group cut its target to US$200 from US$360. While pullbacks were significant on the day’s news, other analysts have been tracking Lulu’s declining fortunes and adjusting incrementally. For example, Alex Straton, an analyst at Morgan Stanley started the year with a price target of US$420, but has since hacked it back five times to US$223.

Keeping score

Everything that glitters

If you look at the the top-10 performers on the S&P/TSX composite index year to date, you’ll see that eight of the 10 are gold miners, with all them posting triple-digit price gains. At the top of the list is

Lundin Gold Inc.

(TSX:LUG), up 206 per cent, with other gainers including SSR Mining Inc. (TSX:SSRM), +185 per cent,

New Gold Inc.

, +140 per cent,

Kinross Gold Corp.

(TSX:K), +128 per cent, OceanaGold Corp. (TSX:OGC), +121 per cent,

Dundee Precious Metals Inc.

(TSX:DPM), +109 per cent, G Mining Ventures Corp., +106 per cent, Orla Mining Ltd. (TSX:OLA), +101 per cent. The massive gains can be sourced to the bull market run in the price of gold, which this week pushed past US$3,500 per ounce. The question now is whether gold’s bull run has exhausted itself, leaving shares with nothing left to give. David Rosenberg at Rosenberg Research and Associates Inc. thinks the pieces are in place for gold to climb as high as US$4,000 per ounce. “With a Fed now signalling that rate cuts are on their way, weighing on the greenback in the process, we believe a return of basic fundamentals will fuel the next gold leg higher,” Rosenberg said in a note. Through April of this year, the run-up was largely attributed to central bank buying and global economic uncertainty. Rosenberg said those factors are likely to continue but will be joined by other common drivers of high gold prices:  rate cuts and a lower U.S. dollar. Based on that outlook, Rosenberg suggests buying physical gold though he acknowledges that timing and storage could be issues. “The next best option” is gold-backed ETFs including SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) or Sprott Physical Gold Trust (PHYS). He also suggests miners including VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) and, “if your risk tolerance is a little higher,” VanEck Junior Gold Miners (GDXJ). Rosenberg also reminded that what’s good for gold usually spills over to sliver and platinum.

While gold’s run has been impressive, some analysts are not convinced it will continued. Here’s a rundown of some of their price targets for the high flyers:

Lundin Gold Inc.

: TD Securities has a price target of $76.00 as of Sept. 2, while National Bank of Canada has a price target of $85.00 as of an Aug. 20 report and wrapup of the second quarter results for the gold sector. The stock is currently trading at $94.00.

SSR Mining Inc.

, TD has a price target of $24.00, while National Bank has a price target of $24.75. The stock is trading at $29.19.

New Gold Inc.

: National Bank has a price target of $8.00. The stock is currently trading at $8.70.

Kinross Gold Corp.

: TD has a price target of $22.00 The stock is trading at $30.

OceanaGold Corp.

: TD has a price target of $22.00. The stock is currently trading at $26.79.

Dundee Precious Metals Inc.

: TD has a price target of $28.00. The stock is currently trading at $27.00.

G Mining Ventures Corp.

: RBC Capital Markets put out a new note this week reaffirming a price target of $27.00. TD has a price target of D has a price target of $28.00. The stock is currently trading at $22.00.

Orla Mining Ltd.

: TD has a price target of $16.00. The stock is trading at $16.00.

  • This TSX stock is already up 110% since April. Analysts say a uranium shortage could power it even higher
  • This TSX stock has analysts stretching their price targets, with one analyst upping it nearly 80%

Top ideas from TD

Energy stocks on the TSX might not be an obvious place to look for winners given the price for oil has been range bound. But some analysts think there are winners to be found, with TD analysts offering up three options in the sector. “We are encouraging investors to revisit resilient business models with near-term tailwinds and and historically attractive valuation,” TD Securities analysts Aaron Bilkoski and Dustin Besaw said in a note. Under that criteria, the pair like PrairieSky Royalty Ltd. (TSX:PSK) for its high free cash flow margins and zero capital expenditures, making it less vulnerable to lower oil prices. The pair have a price target of $27. PrairieSky is currently trading at $24.28. TD analysts Aaron MacNeil and Aly Hemraj’s like

Pembina Pipeline Corp.

(TSX:PPL), out of favour of late. The outlook has improved, the analysts said, after a settlement was reached in a dispute with shippers over pipeline fees and revenue-sharing, plus the pair think “several growth opportunities are in the pipeline.” MacNeil and Hemraj have a price target of $64. The stock is trading at $52.00. TD’s final best idea is Enerflex Ltd.(TSX:EFX), which MacNeil and Hemraj called a “mispriced natural gas opportunity.” Despite a better cash flow profile than its peers in energy services, the pair think “Enerflex is deserving of a larger premium in our view.” They have a price target of $17.00. The stock is trading at $13.90.

• Email: gmvsuhanic@postmedia.com