Blue Apron Got a Triple Upgrade From Analysts

In this segment from Market Foolery, host Chris Hill and Million Dollar Portfolio's Jason Moser consider the much-maligned meal-kit service. Its product is less problematic than the profit, of which there hasn't been any yet. But between competitors and costs, Blue Apron (NYSE: APRN) shares have been punished, right up until Monday's 13% gain. Has it really hit a price range where it's a worthwhile investment?

A full transcript follows the video.

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This video was recorded on July 24, 2017.

Chris Hill: We've talked a lot about Blue Apron lately. Isn't that fair to say? And a lot of it's been negative. So we feel a slight application to point out that shares of Blue Apron are up 11% this morning on not one, not two, but three analyst upgrades.

Jason Moser: Yeah. I feel a tremendous obligation to do this, because contrary to popular belief, Chris, I am not a hater, in any general sense of the word. I like to think of myself has a nice guy. Our job is to analyze and make decisions based on that analysis.

Hill: And apparently now there are three analysts who look at the stock being knocked down the way it has and say, "You know what? I actually would buy it at that price."

Moser: Sure. Was it Stockwatchlast week you were asking me, is there some price where you feel like maybe this becomes attractive? And I think my answer at the time was no. It's nice to not have to rag on these guys, all in all. I like actually being able to look at a positive story for Blue Apron, because again, from a service perspective, it sounds like it's a great service. As an investment, listen, I still can't say that I'm on board with these analyst calls. I don't agree with it. But that's not to say that I'm right, either. Maybe these guys have figured it out. In the near run, there's no question, they're going to have to pay a lot of money to acquire new customers. When you're not profitable, the market is only going to give you so much to work with. And when you're dealing with something like Amazon, it's going to make it that much more difficult. By the same token, I think probably we're all a little bit guilty of making this quick leap to just thinking that Amazon is going to own this space thanks for the Whole Foods acquisition and its distribution and fulfillment expertise. But, again, Blue Apron, we're rooting for them. The numbers don't lie, though. They certainly have a lot of challenges on their hands. These analyst calls are part and parcel of the business. But it's nice to see them having a good day, and I hope they can continue to keep things on the up and up.

Chris Hill owns shares of Amazon. Jason Moser has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.