(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Thursday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to see the latest posts.) A struggling electric vehicle maker and its parent company of two combat sports leagues were in focus in early Thursday news calls analyst. Jefferies started Rivian with a buy rating, predicting upside of more than 40%. Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs gave a buy rating to TKO Group, noting that the stock can outperform going forward. Check out the latest calls and chats below. All times ET. 5:35: Jefferies primes Rivian for purchase, cites competitive advantages Rivian has an edge over its peers, according to Jefferies. The investment firm initiated coverage of the electric vehicle maker with a buy rating. Although Rivian shares have fallen 53% this year, Jefferies’ $16 price target implies the stock could rise 45% from here on out. “From the beginning, Rivian was given more time and capital than most start-ups to ‘get it right.’ In our view, management has effectively created a well-defined lifestyle with industry-leading credentials sustainability and the environment, as well as pioneering an electric van platform for last mile delivery,” wrote analyst Philippe Houchois. The analyst justified his price target by pointing out Rivian’s unique intellectual property, brand value, software stack and revamped manufacturing assets. These factors could attract public investors as well as potential outside corporate interests amid industry consolidation, Houchois wrote. However, he added that Rivian’s success will depend on two “critical if not existential” tests in 2024: reducing variable unit manufacturing costs to workable levels and demonstrating that the R2 platform can be developed at a much lower cost than the R1 model. . RIVN YTD mountain RIVN since the beginning of the year — Lisa Kailai Han 5:35: Goldman says to buy TKO Group, parent of UFC and WWE. The future looks bright for TKO Group, according to Goldman Sachs. Analyst Stephen Laszczyk initiated coverage of the UFC and WWE parent company with a buy rating and a $102 price target. This forecast implies an increase of more than 28%. Laszczyk cited three reasons for his bullish outlook on the stock: “Strong secular tailwinds in the sports media and live entertainment sectors,” “Execution against robust revenue and expense synergy opportunities,” “Leverage operational built into the relatively fixed expenses of the TKO structure.” “We believe TKO Group is well positioned, through the recent combination of UFC and WWE, to achieve high-single-digit annualized growth in revenue and low-double-digit annualized growth in adjusted EBITDA,” he added. Year to date, TKO Group shares have lagged the broader gauge, losing 2.8%, while the S&P 500 index has risen 7%. In the last six months the stock has fallen by 20%. TKO YTD bar TKO year to date – Fred Imbert