BUZZ-PREVIEW: FedEx profit seen rising heading into report after the bell

** Shares of FedEx FDX.N up 0.6% at $283.80 in midday trading on Thurs as parcel giant slated to report fiscal Q2 results after market close

** For qtr-end Nov, analysts expect FDX to post adj EPS of $4.11, up from $4.05 a year ago, and rev to grow ~4% yr/yr to $22.79 bln, according to LSEG data

** Memphis, Tennessee-based firm's results last qtr surprised Wall Street, as strong domestic deliveries and cost-cutting offset a tariff-induced decline in international volumes

** Deutsche Bank this week raised its PT to $322 from $276, saying FDX's profit push through network integration, Europe revamp, and firm pricing could drive more upside if progress holds

** Roughly one-third of the 30 brokerages covering FDX boosted their respective PTs on the stock in Dec, according to LSEG

** Recommendation breakdown is 19 "strong buy" or "buy", 9 "hold" and 2 "sell" ratings; median PT of $285 up from $274.50 a month ago

** Including move on Thurs, FDX shares up ~1% YTD, well underperforming ~17% advance in S&P 500 Industrials .SPLRCI

** FDX shares recently traded at about 14.4x forward earnings, inline with rival UPS UPS.N, per LSEG Datastream data

(Lance Tupper is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own)

((lance.tupper@tr.com 1-646-279-6380))