Many of Australia's top brokers have been busy adjusting their financial models again, leading to the release of a large number of broker notes this week.
Three ASX shares brokers have named as buys this week are listed below. Here's why they are bullish on them:
Appen Ltd (ASX: APX)
According to a note out of Citi, its analysts have retained their buy rating and $14.80 price target on this artificial intelligence data services company's shares. While it acknowledges that Appen is likely to have started the year off slowly based on data out of its largest customer, Meta (Facebook). It reminds investors that January is traditionally a quiet period and suggests that they don't judge the whole year on this month. The Appen share price is trading at $8.66 on Wednesday.
GUD Holdings Limited (ASX: GUD)
A note out of Credit Suisse reveals that its analysts have retained their outperform rating and lifted their price target on this diversified products company's shares to $17.00. This follows the release of a first half result that was ahead of expectations. Outside this, the broker is positive on its outlook and believes recent acquisitions have made the company stronger. So much so, it suspects a guidance upgrade could be coming in a couple of months. The GUD share price is fetching $12.95 today.
Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG)
Analysts at Citi have retained their buy rating and $226.00 price target on this investment bank's shares following the release of its third quarter update. Citi was impressed with the company's results and notes that its Commodities and MacCap businesses are powering ahead. And while it continues to expect Macquarie's earnings to peak in FY 2022 and then decline in FY 2023 and FY 2024, it still sees enough value to maintain its buy rating. The Macquarie share price is trading at $197.65 today.
