What happened Shares of Scientific Games Corp. (NASDAQ: SGMS) jumped as much as 14.9% in trading Tuesday after an analyst upgrade. This comes a day after the stock jumped on a stronger-than-expected earnings report. At 3:30 p.m. EDT, shares were still up 11.5% on the day. So what The driver of today's jump was analyst Steven Wieczynski at Stifel Nicolaus, who raised his price target from $24 to $35. The price is below where shares are trading today, and Wieczynski didn't raise his rating on the stock, keeping it at a "hold." Image source: Getty Images. In a note to analysts, Wieczynski said debt refinancing and improving fundamentals could lead to accelerated margin expansion. That would be welcome news for investors a quarter after reporting a $0.44 loss per share. Now what Long-term, improving earnings will be far more significant than any analyst price target. But keep in mind that analysts are still expecting a loss of $1.05 per share in 2018, so profitability is still a long way off. That's a big reason to stay away from betting on this lottery stock and will keep me away from shares today. 10 stocks we like better than Scientific GamesWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Scientific Games wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of July 6, 2017Travis Hoium has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.