by Ian Cooper

With summer just weeks away already, many of us are scrambling to get back into shape.

So, we went hunting for some of the top stocks that could move as the weather warms up.

One of the top ones is WW (WW), formerly Weight Watchers.

Sure, the stock was severely beaten down on slowing growth, but its latest acquisition may have breathed new life into it. Its latest acquisition of Sequence could be a game-changer for WW International. In fact, DA Davidson analyst Linda Bolton Weiser has a buy rating on the WW stock with a $9 price target.

The analyst noted: The company’s acquisition of Sequence and ability to offer scripts for Wegovy is a “game-changer”. Over 70% of WW members are obese and possible drug candidates, and if the company trades up just 10% of its obese North America subs to $99 monthly drug maintenance, it could add over 50% to North America sales.

Even Goldman Sachs analyst Jason English just upgraded WW to a buy rating, with a price target of $13 from $3.80 a share.

Better, with the acquisition, WW enters the prescription drug and clinical weight loss segment. In addition, Sequence clinicians can prescribe medications like Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Saxenda, and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro.Currently, Wegovy and Saxenda are approved drugs for obesity in the United States, with tirzepatide also widely expected to be approved for it later this year, as noted by a Seeking Alpha article.

Or, look at Planet Fitness (PLNT).

All as people fight to get back into shape for the warmer months ahead. Better, Piper Sandler analysts just raised their price target on PLNT to $98 from $96, with an overweight rating.  

And, as noted by TheFly.com: Piper’s semi-annual teen survey results and channel checks both point to “abnormally strong” new member sign-ups in Q1 for Planet Fitness, which bodes very well for 2023 results given its membership model. The firm thinks Planet Fitness shares currently present an “extremely attractive risk/reward” and should be bought before the Q1 results in the first half of May.

Or, take a look at Novo Nordisk (NVO).

The stock is still running on strong demand for its weight loss drug.  

According to Morningtar, “The Danish insulin maker said in the first quarter, at constant exchange rates, its operating profit rose 28% on sales growth of 25%. Thanks mostly to prescription trends for weight-loss drug Wegovvy, Novo Nordisk now expects operating profit growth between 28% and 34% on sales growth between 24% and 30%, vs. its earlier view of 13% to 19% growth in both operating profit and sales for the year.”