INTU
The setup got messy, but BofA is still waving the flag
Intuit’s latest quarter had a little bit of everything: a revenue beat, an EPS beat, a higher full-year outlook, and a 17% workforce cut that made investors do the financial equivalent of a double take. The stock still got slapped around, but BofA Securities thinks the market may be overcooking the bad news.
Why the bull case isn’t dead
Analyst Tal Liani reinstated coverage with a Buy rating and a $400 price target, arguing that Intuit’s premium franchise still deserves a premium multiple. In plain English: the company has sticky products, fat margins, and a business model that doesn’t exactly look like it’s about to fall out of the sky.
He’s betting the real engine is moving upmarket. The weak spot is DIY tax among lower-income households, where AI tools and free alternatives are nibbling at the edges. But Intuit is steering more customers toward assisted offerings, which the analyst says make up about 88% of the $42 billion U.S. tax market. That’s the nicer, fancier lane — and it’s where the money is.
AI menace or AI sidekick?
Yes, AI is pressuring some low-end workflows. But BofA’s take is that AI looks more like a noisy roommate than a hostile takeover. It automates some tasks, sure, but it also helps Intuit push users toward higher-value products like TurboTax assisted services and QuickBooks upgrades.
The analyst also sees 17% to 19% Online Services growth through 2026–2028, helped by Enterprise Suite and QuickBooks Advanced expanding into mid-market customers. Translation: Intuit doesn’t need every household in America to love DIY taxes if it can keep climbing the business ladder.
Big picture
The stock has already taken a beating, so the bar is low and the expectations are wobbly. BofA’s message is basically: the selloff may have priced in too much doom, and Intuit’s moat is still wider than the market thinks.