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UiPath and Pilgrim's Pride have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – October 14, 2025 – Zacks Equity Research shares UiPath (PATH - Free Report) as the Bull of the Day and Pilgrim’s Pride (PPC - Free Report) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on SoundHound AI, Inc. (SOUN - Free Report) , Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG - Free Report) and Mastercard Inc. (MA - Free Report) .

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks.

Bull of the Day:

UiPath is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) that offers an end-to-end platform for automation, combining Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solutions for digital business operations.

The stock continues to trade well below the post-IPO highs it made back in 2021, but the bulls have started to make a push after positive earnings momentum and a handful of partnership announcements.

With AI stocks surging in 2025, UiPath looks poised to join the next wave of breakout winners.

About the Company

The company is headquartered in New York City and employs over 4,000 people. PATH has a market cap of $9 billion and a Forward PE of 26

The stock has Zacks Style Scores of “B” in Growth, “D” in Momentum and “F” in Value.

UiPath offers a robotic process automation (RPA) platform that uses artificial intelligence to automate repetitive and rule-based tasks while streamlining operations. Its software robots mimic human actions by navigating systems, entering data, and completing routine workflows with greater speed, accuracy, and efficiency, allowing employees to focus on higher value work.

Q2 Earnings

UiPath posted another solid quarter, delivering strong results and raising full-year guidance as platform usage and customer adoption accelerated.

The company reported an 87% EPS beat, with adjusted EPS of $0.15, topping the $0.08 consensus. Revenue was up 14% year-over-year and Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) grew 11% to $1.72 billion. Net new ARR was $31 million, while cloud ARR surged 25% to $1.08 billion. Non-GAAP operating income reached $62 million, a 17% margin, up 2,500 basis points from last year, reflecting disciplined cost management and a 6% reduction in operating expenses.

UiPath, Inc. price-eps-surprise | UiPath, Inc. Quote

UiPath closed the quarter with $1.5 billion in cash, no debt, and $45 million in adjusted free cash flow, also repurchasing 8.3 million shares at an average price of $12.10.

Looking ahead, UiPath expects third quarter fiscal 2026 revenue between $390 million and $395 million, annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $1.77 to $1.78 billion, and non-GAAP operating income of about $70 million. The company also raised its full year outlook across all key metrics, projecting revenue of $1.57 to $1.58 billion, ARR of $1.83 to $1.84 billion, non-GAAP operating income of $340 million (up from $305 million previously), adjusted free cash flow of roughly $370 million, and non-GAAP gross margin close to 85 percent.

CEO Daniel Dines credited the strong results to better execution and the growing momentum of UiPath’s agentic AI capabilities, noting that automation and agentic intelligence work best together to help customers coordinate agents, robots, and people to achieve measurable outcomes.

Estimates Rising

Looking at the numbers, estimates are headed higher across most time frames. The current quarter saw a slight tick higher, while next quarter is flat. But when we look at the big picture, the needle starts to move.

Over the last 60 days, estimates have moved 18% higher for the current year, going from $0.55 to $0.65.

Looking at next year, we see another 18% move to the upside, going from $0.61 to $0.72.

Fusion 25

Shares of UiPath surged after its Fusion 25 user conference in Las Vegas, where the company unveiled a slate of agentic AI partnerships and product updates. UiPath announced collaborations with Snowflake, NVIDIA, OpenAI, and Microsoft to deepen its integration of automation with generative AI and data intelligence.

These deals expand UiPath’s reach across data analytics, cloud, and enterprise workflows, helping customers deploy AI agents faster and automate complex, high-trust processes like fraud detection and healthcare management.

The announcements sparked renewed investor enthusiasm, driving PATH shares from under $13 to nearly $19 in just over a week.

The Technical Take

The stock has cleared all its moving averages, and the 50-day (Currently at $12) is looking to cross the 200-day moving average at $12.35. This would signal a “Golden Cross” which would bring more eyeballs to PATH.

Fibonacci levels can give us upside targets, which is about 130% from current levels. The 61.8% resistance level, which can be found by drawing from 2024 highs to 2025 lows, is $21.The target is the 161.8% extension which is just under $40.

In Summary

UiPath is shaping up as a turnaround with significant upside. Rising profitability, accelerating ARR growth, and partnerships with Microsoft, NVIDIA, Snowflake, and OpenAI provide strong catalysts.

After several quiet years, the company is evolving beyond its automation roots into a comprehensive AI platform. This is a shift that could reignite growth, expand margins, and spark a fresh wave of investor enthusiasm heading into 2026.

Bear of the Day:

Pilgrim’s Pride, rated as a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), is a leading player in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken and pork offerings to a wide range of clients, including retailers, distributors, and food service operators.

The stock has been strong over the last two years, but has given up all its 2025 gains since the summer.

Investors might be tempted to nibble at this one, but both the fundamentals and technicals are signaling patience.

More About Pilgrim’s Pride

Established in 1946, Pilgrim's Pride, headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, boasts a workforce exceeding 60,000 individuals and has a market cap of $9 billion.

The company offers a diverse array of products under various brands such as Pilgrim's, Just BARE, Gold'n Pump, Country Pride and more.

The company has been particularly focused on growing its Prepared Foods category, which continues to gain traction thanks to ongoing investments in R&D, marketing, and product innovation. Pilgrim’s Pride has been enhancing its mix with organic and “No-Antibiotics-Ever” products to meet rising demand for clean-label, high-quality protein options.

The stock has Zacks Style Scores of “A” in Value and Growth, but “D” in Momentum. It has a Forward PE of 7 and pays no dividend.

Q2 Earnings

Pilgrim’s Pride delivered a 10% EPS beat, with revenue up 4% year-over-year to $4.76 billion. Adjusted EBITDA climbed to $687 million, up from $533 million in the prior quarter, driving a 14.4% margin versus 12% in Q1.

CEO Fabio Sandri credited the company’s diversified portfolio and focus on its Prepared Foods business for the strong results, noting that “demand from Key Customers outpaced the category, and our business became more diversified as sales of prepared offerings expanded.”

The U.S. segment led the way with gains across Fresh, Case Ready, and Prepared, supported by elevated commodity values, continued operational efficiencies, and robust demand from quick-service restaurants. Prepared Foods remained a standout, with net sales up 20% year-over-year, fueled by double-digit retail and foodservice growth and a 26% rise in digitally enabled sales.

Internationally, both Europe and Mexico posted solid performances. The European business delivered margin expansion on improved manufacturing efficiency, cost discipline, and stronger branded momentum for Fridge Raiders and Rollover, while sales to key customers rose over 5% from last year.

The company announced a $400 million investment to build a new fully cooked Prepared Foods facility in Walker County, Georgia, along with expansions at its Moorfield and Waco plants. Management also declared a special dividend of approximately $500 million.

Despite all the positive news, the stock is down over 20% from the earnings announcement.

Analyst Estimates Dropping

Analysts have recently lowered estimates for Pilgrim’s Pride as chicken pricing has moderated and commodity conditions have become less favorable than in the first half of the year. Following a strong Q2 supported by high cutout values and robust Prepared Foods growth, prices for wings, tenders, and breasts have eased as supply rebounded and retail promotions slowed heading into fall, pressuring Q3 margin expectations

Looking at the numbers, we are starting to see a trend lower over the short term and a drastic drop next year.

For the current quarter, we have seen analysts estimates fall in the last 7 days. Numbers have been taken from $1.46 to $1.41, an up lower of 3%.

The current year has also seen a recent drop, with estimates going from $5.39 to $5.21, or 3%.

Looking at next year, numbers drop 18%, falling from $5.08 to $4.15.

After earnings, a handful of analysts dropped their price targets. And with the next earnings report a few weeks away, Goldman Sachs recently cut its price target from $54 to $446.

The Technical Take

The stock was strong in 2024 and held up for most of this year. However, the bulls started losing their taste for the PPC over the summer.

All the moving averages are broken, with the 200-day at $45. We could get a bounce, but the moving averages likely become areas of resistance, instead of support as they were last year.

Looking at the long-term chart from 2023, the $29-34 level will likely be the “Buy Zone”. This is the Fibonacci support area, with the 61.8% support level at $29. Investors should be patient and wait for that potential “buy the dip” area.

In Summary

Pilgrim’s Pride now faces mounting headwinds despite its leading position in the protein market. Falling chicken prices, weaker-than-expected commodity trends, and a deteriorating technical setup have pressured both near-term earnings and sentiment.

With the stock breaking key moving averages and analyst estimates falling sharply, caution is warranted. Investors should remain on the sidelines and watch for a more compelling entry point rather than chasing the decline.

Additional content:

Buy or Wait? Evaluating SoundHound AI’s Investment Case

Riding the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, SoundHound AI, Inc.’s shares have gained over 250% in the past year. The company’s revenues increased substantially, and the company raised its full-year guidance primarily due to a growing customer base. However, continued losses and declining margins have led investors to question whether it’s the right time to buy the stock. Let’s explore –

Reasons to be Bullish on SoundHound AI

SoundHound’s products have gained significant popularity by integrating AI with audio recognition technology, making them much more advanced than older, simpler systems like Alexa. Notably, Houndify helps businesses develop their own AI-powered voice recognition services and is widely used by a diverse range of customers, from restaurants like Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. to card companies like Mastercard Inc.

SoundHound has successfully attracted new customers in the second quarter, marking its strongest period to date. It also secured a major OEM automotive customer in China and added one of the world’s largest healthcare companies as its customer. Needless to say, SoundHound’s strong customer growth is adding to the revenues.

In the second quarter, SoundHound’s revenues were $42.7 million, up 217% year over year, citing investors.soundhound.com. Moreover, the company expects underlying momentum to continue and raised full-year revenue expectations to $160-$178 million. The full-year revenue guidance is significantly higher than last year’s revenues of $84.6 million.

Additionally, as of June 30, 2025, SoundHound has substantial cash and cash equivalents of $230 million and no debt. This means the company can create growth opportunities and has strong creditworthiness. The cash reserve also protects SoundHound from any unforeseen economic downturns.

Is Now a Good Time to Buy SoundHound AI Stock?

Given SoundHound’s solid revenue growth and increasing interest from large enterprise customers in its conversational AI platform, the company seems well-positioned to move toward profitability in the near future. This should encourage existing shareholders to hold onto SOUN stock.

Furthermore, the company’s technical indicators signal an uptrend, as the stock is presently trading above its long-term 200-day moving average (DMA) and short-term 50 DMA.

However, SoundHound isn’t profitable yet. On a GAAP basis, SoundHound has posted a loss of $0.19 a share in the second quarter, more than a loss of $0.11 a share in the year-ago quarter. On a non-GAAP basis, the company also reported a loss of $0.03 a share. Additionally, the company’s non-GAAP gross margin was 58.4%, less than 66.5% a year ago.

So, the company struggled to achieve profitability despite revenue growth, casting doubts on the long-term feasibility of its business model. Therefore, new investors should refrain from investing in the SOUN stock now. SoundHound AI currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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