Wayfair Inc. was upgraded to buy from hold at Stifel on the belief that the company is “creating a defensible moat” through its investments in logistics, international expansion and technology. The effort is giving Wayfair a strong competitive position against Amazon.com Inc. , traditional retailers and other online home platforms, analysts led by Scott Devitt say. Wayfair also has a large and growing market, with Stifel valuing North America and Western Europe at $400 billion, excluding appliances. Online penetration is just below 10% in North America and just above 10% in Western Europe. Analysts say there will likely be a shift to e-commerce, with Wayfair likely to capture a “sizable” share. Wayfair shares are up 1.5% in Friday premarket trading, and up nearly 92% for the year so far, while the S&P 500 index , which is up 9% for the period.
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