Pre-Market Stock Futures:

Futures are trading lower after a big start to the holiday-shortened trading week, which saw every index trade higher, after the small-cap Russell 2000 eked out a tiny gain on the close, finishing up 0.01% at $3010, and still leads all the major indices in 2026, up over 20%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq exploded higher, closing up 2.07% at 25,820, while the S&P 500 also saw strength, closing the session at 7,440, higher by 1.18%. The venerable Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a record high of 52,182, up 059% on the day, with a nice move higher from new member Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL). Positive news on the Iran war, with negotiators meeting today in Qatar, and an announced end to hostilities between the two nations, was the backdrop for a very solid day for stocks. We could see more fireworks before the weekend 4th of July fireworks, as end-of-quarter reallocations and window dressing could skew volatility and trading volume higher.

Treasury Bonds:

Yields were mixed across the Treasury curve on Monday, as some light buying came in on the long end, while there was selling across the belly and shorter maturities. Traders will continue to watch the situation in Iran. They will also be waiting for the May employment numbers scheduled for Thursday, as the markets are closed for the Federal 4th of July holiday on Friday. The 30-year-long bond finished the day at 4.86%, while the 10-year note was last seen at 4.37%. 

Oil and Gas:

After last week’s sizable sell-off, the energy complex attracted some buyers on Monday, as lower prices enticed accumulation at current levels. Brent Crude closed the day at $72.89, up 1.2%, while West Texas Intermediate finished the day at $70.39, up 1.82%. Natural gas, which has been strong recently, closed lower for the second straight session, down 3.26% at $3.17. The lower close was likely profit-taking, as the outlook for the commodity remains bullish. 

Gold:

After a nice move higher last week, Gold stumbled on Monday, closing down by 1.8% at $4,014, while Silver also closed lower, finishing the day at $58.13, down 1.56%. This comes as TD Securities’ head of commodity research, Bart Melek, predicted that gold will fall to $3,900 before rising to $5,300 by the end of 2026. He cited continued inflationary pressure as the main reason for the positive outlook. 

Crypto:

Bitcoin continued to consolidate in the $59,000–$60,500 zone yesterday, and pushed toward $60,158 intraday before trading in the $60,150–$60,370 range late Monday afternoon. The modest gains of roughly +1% over the past 24 hours came amid low volatility and sideways trading. Ethereum hovered near $1,590–$1,620 during the day, with a slight recovery from earlier in the session. Sentiment remains neutral-to-cautious on the crypto sector, and on Monday, many altcoins saw more decliners than gainers, with broader crypto markets reflecting risk-off flows tied to macro factors, such as the stronger U.S. dollar and interest rate expectations. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin was trading at $59,210. At the same time, Ethereum was quoted at $1,582.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports every day to identify fresh investment ideas for investors and traders alike. These daily analyst notes include recommendations on stocks to buy, sell, or avoid, as well as new coverage initiations. Important reminder: No single analyst report should ever be the sole basis for buying or selling a stock.

Here are some of the best Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Tuesday, June 30, 2026.  

Upgrades:

• Block (NYSE: XYZ) caught a double upgrade from Piper Sandler, which lifted the shares to Overweight from Underweight, and boosted the target price to $100 from $58.
• Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) was raised to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, which trimmed the target price for the shares to $32 from $34.
• Fortune Brands Innovations (NYSE: FBIN) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist, which lifted the target price for the shares to $70 from $45.
• Honeywell International (NYSE: HON) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Daiwa, which moved the target price for the shares to $255 from $240.
• Tradeweb Markets (NASDAQ: TW) Goldman Sachs upgraded the shares to Buy from Neutral, with a $146 target price.

Downgrades:

• Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) was downgraded to Reduce from Hold at HSBC, with a $102 target price.
• Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) was downgraded to Underperform from Perform at Oppenherim, without a target price.
• Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) was cut to Underperform from Neutral at Bank of America, which dropped the price target for the shares to $86 from $108.
• Scorpio Tankers (NYSE: STNG) was downgraded to Underperform from Buy at Bank of America, which cut the target price to $78 from $100.
• Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Arete, with an $11.60 target price.

Initiations:

• Cerebras Systems (NASDAQ: CBRS) was started with a Hold rating at Freedom Capital, with a $209 target price.
• Klarna Group (NYSE: KLAR) was started with a Market Perform rating at Citizens, without a target price.
• MKS (NASDAQ: MKSI) was initiated with an Outperform rating at BMO Capital, with a $453 target price.
• Rocket Companies (NYSE: RKT) was initiated with a Buy rating at Benchmark, with a $21 target price. 
  
• Visa (NYSE: V) was initiated with an Overweight rating at Piper Sandler, with a $394 target price objective for the credit card giant.

The post Here are Tuesday’s Best Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Block, Comcast, Fortinet, Goldman Sachs, Honeywell, Klarna, Logitech, Scorpio Tankers, Trade Desk, and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Pre-Market Stock Futures:

The futures are trading lower on Thursday after investors and traders tapped the brakes on the 2026 new year rally, as only the Nasdaq was able to grind out another gain, finishing the session at 23,584, up 0.16. After exploding higher to print new all-time highs on Tuesday, both the Dow Jones Industrials and the S&P 500 ended the day lower, with the former down 0.94% to close at 48.996 as Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) was hammered to the tune of 4.25%, and the latter down just 0.34% to finish the day at 6,920. Needless to say, after a sprint out of the box to start the year, we could be seeing some short-term traders scalping profits, but it’s also possible investors were selling losers and winners from 2025 this year to book gains or losses in 2026. With the non-farm payrolls for December released on Friday morning, some could be taking capital off the table ahead of the report, following a lackluster year in 2025 for job growth and a poor ADP employment report.

Treasury Bonds:

Yields were mainly lower across the Treasury curve on Wednesday as buyers continued to snap up many intermediate- and longer-dated government bonds. Traders cited the weaker-than-expected ADP employment data, which showed a gain of 41,000 jobs versus expectations of 48,000. In addition, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report indicated that job openings fell more than expected, reaching their lowest level in over a year. This is the kind of data that could spur more interest rate cuts in 2026. The 30-year Treasury long bond closed at 4.82% while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.14%.

Oil and Gas:

Crude oil prices were lower across the energy complex on Wednesday, but the extreme pressure seen earlier in the week abated somewhat. Brent Crude finished trading on Wednesday at $60.31, down 0.64%, while West Texas Intermediate finished down 1.42% at $56.32. Concerns about oversupply continue to pose headwinds for the sector. Still, one positive for the day came when it was reported that four key Opec+ producers have pledged to deepen their production cuts in the first half of 2026, as the organization looks to improve quota compliance among its members. One bright spot for the day was natural gas rallying 6.48% to finish at $3.57. 

Gold:

For the first time in the new year, Gold and Silver finished lower on the day, and the likely reason was old-fashioned profit-taking after a massive rally in both precious metals over the last year. Last year, gold posted its biggest gains since 1979, and while the base for continued moves higher is in place for both gold and silver, traders are expecting near-term volatility. The final gold quote was $4,452, down 0.92%, while silver was quoted at $78.13, down 3.78%. 

Crypto:

Crypto trading on Wednesday saw a downturn, with Bitcoin falling below $92,000 and pulling major altcoins down, extending earlier losses as traders digest new U.S. labor data and geopolitical risks, leading to increased risk-off sentiment and significant liquidations in leveraged futures, mainly affecting coins like XRP and Ethereum. At 8A EST, Bitcoin traded at $89.830, while Ethereum traded at $3,091.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports daily to identify new investment ideas for both investors and traders. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. 

Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on 

 Upgrades:

• Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Cantor Fitzgerald, which raised its target price to $370 from $310.
• Chubb Ltd. (NYSE: CD) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Goldman Sachs with a $351 price target.
• Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America, with a $340 target price objective.
• The Gap Inc. (NYSE: GAP) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS with a $41 target price.
• Roku Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU) was upgraded to Outperform from In Line at Evercore ISI, which lifted the target price for the shares to $145 from $1o5.

Downgrades:

• Alcoa Corp. (NYSE: AA) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which bumped the target price up to $50 from $45.
• Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Truist, which dropped the target price for the restaurant giant to $207 from $240.
• Digital Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: DLR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Bank of America, which slashed the target price for the shares to $170 from $210.
• Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at BNP Paribas, which dropped the target price to $106 from $128.
• Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: NBIX) was cut to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley, who bumped the target price up to $175 from $173.

Initiations:

• Bread Financial Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BFH) was initiated with a Buy rating at UBS, with a $92 target price.
• Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ: INTU) was initiated with a Buy rating at TD Cowen with a giant $802 target price. 
  
• Polaris Inc. (NYSE: PII) was initiated with a Buy rating at Seaport Research, which has set a $83 target for the shares.
• Reddit Inc. (NYSE: RDDT) was started with a Neutral rating at Cantor Fitzgerald with a $240 target price.
• Tyler Technologies Inc. (NYSE: TYL) was initiated with a Buy rating at Stifel, which has set a $550 target price objective.

The post Here Are Thursday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Alphabet, Coinbase Global, Digital Realty Trust, Intuit, Reddit, Roku, Tyler Technologies, and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The office products industry faces relentless headwinds as remote work, digitization, and shifting workplace habits erode demand for traditional supplies. Some companies are fighting back with strategic pivots, cost discipline, and acquisitions to unlock value in adjacent markets. ACCO Brands (NYSE:ACCO) just acquired premium headset maker EPOS for $11.7 million. We examined ACCO alongside peers navigating similar challenges to see who’s positioned to benefit from operational transformation in a declining category.

Four Companies Fighting the Office Products Downturn

ACCO Brands (NYSE:ACCO)

ACCO Brands manufactures staplers, binders, whiteboards, and computer accessories under brands like Swingline, Mead, and Kensington. The company generates $1.54 billion in annual revenue but saw sales contract 8.8% year over year in its most recent quarter. ACCO is betting on cost cuts and strategic acquisitions to stabilize margins and diversify beyond declining stationery sales.

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL)

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL) operates a portfolio spanning office products (Sharpie, Paper Mate), home goods (Rubbermaid), and outdoor gear (Coleman). The company has been divesting non-core assets and focusing on higher-margin consumer categories. Office products remain part of the mix, but Newell’s exposure is diluted across multiple segments.

Logitech International (NASDAQ:LOGI)

Logitech International (NASDAQ:LOGI) designs computer peripherals including mice, keyboards, webcams, and headsets. Unlike traditional office suppliers, Logitech benefits from hybrid work trends driving demand for home office technology. The company reported strong growth in video collaboration products and gaming accessories, positioning it differently from paper-based competitors.

HNI Corporation (NYSE:HNI)

HNI Corporation (NYSE:HNI) manufactures office furniture and hearth products. While not a direct office supplies competitor, HNI faces similar workplace transformation pressures. The company has focused on flexible workspace solutions and contract furniture for corporate clients adapting to hybrid models.

How Their Businesses Compare

ACCO’s EPOS acquisition expands its Kensington accessories line into the $1.7 billion premium enterprise headset market. Management projects $10 million to $15 million in cost synergies over two years, substantial relative to the $11.7 million purchase price. The deal closes in January 2026 and is expected to boost profitability despite ongoing revenue headwinds. ACCO also operates a $100 million cost reduction program aimed at protecting margins as core stationery demand weakens.

Logitech holds the strongest position among these companies. Its product mix aligns with remote and hybrid work trends rather than fighting against them. Video conferencing equipment, wireless peripherals, and gaming accessories all benefit from the shift away from traditional offices. Logitech’s business is growing while ACCO’s contracts.

Newell Brands has partially insulated itself through diversification. Office products represent only a portion of revenue, with home essentials and outdoor categories providing stability. However, this diversification means Newell lacks the focused operational leverage that a pure-play turnaround could deliver.

HNI faces workspace transformation challenges similar to ACCO’s but operates in furniture rather than supplies. The company benefits from corporate spending on office redesigns for hybrid work, though furniture cycles are longer and more capital-intensive than consumable office products.

What Management Is Saying

ACCO’s December 2025 acquisition announcement stated: “This strategic move aims to diversify ACCO’s offerings and capitalize on a $1.7 billion global market, with anticipated cost synergies of $10 million to $15 million over the next two years.”

The company added: “The acquisition is expected to moderately boost profit in 2026, despite a forecasted revenue decline for ACCO Brands in the current year.”

An October 2025 analysis from Insider Monkey noted that “despite lower-than-expected sales in Q3 2025 due to soft global demand, the company projects improved sales trends in Q4, driven by technology accessories and favorable foreign exchange rates.”

Management’s emphasis on cost discipline and technology accessories signals recognition that traditional office supplies won’t drive growth. The EPOS deal represents a concrete bet on premium workplace technology as the path forward.

Who Actually Benefits Most

Income investors seeking high yields benefit most from ACCO’s current situation. The stock offers an 8.13% dividend yield backed by 27 consecutive quarterly payments since 2018. The company trades at 0.52 times book value and 3.84 times forward earnings, creating a margin of safety for dividend sustainability even as revenue declines. Deep value investors also benefit from ACCO’s distressed valuation. Analyst targets average $6.00 versus the current $3.69 price, implying 63% upside if the turnaround gains traction. Institutional investors hold 84% of shares, suggesting sophisticated money managers see potential despite operational challenges.

Logitech serves growth-oriented investors better. Its products align with secular trends rather than requiring a turnaround thesis. Newell and HNI offer more diversified exposure but lack the focused transformation story or extreme valuation discount that defines ACCO’s appeal.

The Bottom Line

ACCO Brands benefits contrarian income investors willing to accept operational risk for an 8% yield and potential mean reversion. The EPOS acquisition and cost discipline provide tangible catalysts, but the core business remains challenged. Logitech offers cleaner growth exposure, while ACCO presents a high-risk, high-reward opportunity for those betting on stabilization in a distressed sector.

The post 4 Office Products Stocks Are Fighting Remote Work. Here’s Who’s Best Positioned. appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Uber 

Analysts at Guggenheim just upgraded Uber (NYSE: UBER) to a buy rating with a price target of $140 a share.

“Our BUY thesis is underpinned by the company’s asset base consisting of industry-leading 1) network, 2) technology, and 3) brand equity. Uber’s multi-platform network is >3x that of next ‘Gig’ peer, with reach positioning the Rideshare leader for increased Autonomous Vehicle (AV) adoption,” said the firm, as quoted by CNBC.

Last trading at $94.25 as of Tuesday’s close, we’d like to see the ride-sharing stock initially retest its recent high of $100.18 a share.

Logitech 

An improving environment for peripherals is creating a buy opportunity for Logitech (NASDAQ: LOGI), says Citi, as noted by CNBC.

Analysts upgraded the LOGI stock to a “buy” rating from a “neutral” rating. “We’re upgrading LOGI to Buy from Neutral with a TP of $130 (ETR of ~25%),” said the firm. “Peripheral demand should benefit given positive PC data points with checks suggesting constructive Videoconferencing equipment demand amidst return to office, and strong gaming peripherals demand.”

Last trading at $104.94, we’d like to see LOGI initially retest $115 a share.

DoorDash 

Shares of DoorDash (NASDAQ: DASH) were just upgraded to an outperform rating by JPMorgan, which is bullish on DASH’s future following its acquisition of Deliveroo.

“Following the acquisition, DoorDash now operates in 45 countries with a combined population of over a billion. It serves more than 700,000 local businesses and 50 million monthly active users, with Deliveroo having contributed around seven million,” noted CNBC.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals 

Wells Fargo just upgraded Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: APLS) to an overweight rating, with a price target of $32 a share. The firm cited “stabilizing Syfovre sales and its confidence in Empaveli’s launch following a doctor survey for the upgrade. The shares could rally 15%-20% on Empaveli’s growth,” as highlighted by Tip Ranks.

The post Wall Street Analysts Just Upgraded These Hot Stocks: UBER, LOGI, DASH, APLS appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures were trading lower after the major indexes closed decidedly mixed, as the venerable Dow Jones industrial average closed lower while the tech-heavy Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both hit 52-week highs again on Wednesday. As expected, the Federal Reserve paused the rate hikes that have come at every meeting for over a year now. While it may be the pause that refreshes, Fed Chair Powell stated that two more rate hikes were likely on the way later this year.

While the consumer price index data this week was encouraging, the rate of inflation, especially at the core level, is still way above the benchmarks that the Fed has set. U.S. producer prices, reported Wednesday, jumped 1.1% over the last year, marking the 11th consecutive decline in the year-over-year rate of change and the lowest print since December 2020. The index peaked at 11.7% in March 2022.

Treasury yields were down across the curve as bond traders seemingly were positioned to Buy after rates had crept back up to levels not seen since March. The Treasury Department will be hitting the market with a tsunami of inventory of all government maturities, which is estimated at a stunning $1 trillion as the country’s coffers need to be refilled. The 10-year paper closed the day down four basis points at 3.80%, while the two-year note closed at 4.69%, flat on the day. The inversion between the two still indicates a recession could be on the way.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude had a weak day, with both closing down following Tuesday’s solid 3.5% gain. The tug-of-war over China demand still is the leading headline, along with slowing production, as the rig count has continued to fall on a weekly basis. Natural gas finished the day unchanged at $2.34.
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Gold continued its slow start to the week by closing lower at $1,955.70. Traders cited the drop in the producer price index and the general malaise around the bullion over the past month as the reason for the recent weakness. Bitcoin was hammered also on Wednesday, continuing a dreadful stretch that has been aided by worries over regulation. The cryptocurrency finished the day at $25,086, down over 3%.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.
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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday, June 15, 2023.

Albemarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB): KeyBanc Capital Markets started coverage on the stock with a Buy rating and a $260 target price. The consensus target is $263.54, and the stock closed on Wednesday at $226.80.
California Water Service Group (NYSE: CWT): UBS downgraded the shares to Sell from Neutral. The consensus target price is $61 for now. The stock closed over 4% lower on Wednesday at $51.59 after the downgrade.

Catalent Inc. (NYSE: CTLT): Jefferies cut its Buy rating to Hold and its $45 target price to $44. The consensus target is $50.08. Wednesday’s $42.09 close was down 4% for the day on the downgrade.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG): Piper Sandler resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $2,075 price target. The consensus target is $2,082.76. The closing share price on Wednesday was $2,061.17.

Cinemark Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CNK): As B. Riley Securities downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy, it nudged the $21 price target to $20. The consensus target is $18.41. The shares closed on Wednesday at $17.23, which was down over 6% for the day on the downgrade.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD): KeyBanc Capital Markets initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $200 price target. The consensus target is $181.24. Wednesday’s close was at $151.90.

Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ: DECK): Raymond James initiated coverage with an Outperform rating. Its $565 target price compares with the $530.12 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing trade of $506.73, which was up over 3% on the day.

Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ): Piper Sandler started coverage with an Overweight rating and a target price of $349. The consensus target is $350.71, and the stock closed on Wednesday at $305.72.

DoorDash Inc. (NYSE: DASH): When Gordon Haskett downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy, the analyst trimmed the $73 price target to $72. The consensus target is $77.39. Shares closed over 2% lower on Wednesday at $71.50.
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Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL): Berenberg upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold. Its $243 target price compares with the $240.57 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing print of $192.15.

Icahn Enterprises L.P. (NYSE: IEP): Citing inflated net asset value, poor fundamentals and negative headlines, Zacks selected this as its Bear of the Day stock. Shares have traded as high as $55.16 in the past year but closed most recently at $29.28.

IPG Photonics Corp. (NASDAQ: IPGP): The Market Perform rating at Raymond James is now at Outperform. Its $170 target price is well above the consensus target of $138.14 and Wednesday’s close at $132.83.

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK): Piper Sandler started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $93 target price. The consensus target is $101.63. The stock closed at $91.58 on Wednesday.
Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Citigroup’s downgraded to Neutral from Buy included a target price cut to $70 from $73. The consensus target is $65.33. Wednesday’s $56.81 close was down over 11% on the downgrade.

McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD): Piper Sandler resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $308 target price. The consensus is up at $318.45. Wednesday’s close was at $288.44.

NVR Inc. (NYSE: NVR): Seaport Research Partners started coverage of the homebuilder with a Buy rating and a $7,000 target price. The consensus target is $5,666.67, which is lower than Wednesday’s $5,886.57 close.

Papa John’s International Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA): Piper Sandler started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $77 target price. The consensus target is $91.93, and Wednesday’s last trade was delivered at $73.56.

ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE: NOW): Needham started coverage with a Buy rating and a $660 target price. The $547.23 consensus target is lower than Wednesday’s close at $567.31.
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Sherwin-Williams Co. (NYSE: SHW): Citigroup initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $283 target price. The $256.69 consensus target is closer to Wednesday’s close at $245.85.

Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): As MoffettNathanson upgraded the stock to Outperform from Equal Weight, its $75 target price increased to $80. The consensus target is $80.73. The shares closed on Wednesday at $65.06.

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SPCE): Alembic Global Advisors boosted its Underweight rating to Neutral with a $4.75 target price. The consensus target is $4.20, and shares closed on Wednesday at $4.39.
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Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Apple, Devon Energy, EOG Resources, First Horizon, Global Payments, Mobileye Global, Netflix, Oracle, PagSeguro Digital, PayPal, Radian, StoneCo, Ulta Beauty and Urban Outfitters.

The post Thursday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Cinemark, CrowdStrike, DoorDash, Estee Lauder, McDonald’s, ServiceNow, Virgin Galactic and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures were trading lower after a bumpy start to the trading week that saw all the major indexes finish the day lower. The failure of First Republic Bank and the sale of assets to JPMorgan was the big story on Monday, as S&P 500 earnings continued to roll in for the first quarter. Those earnings have so far come in largely better than expected. Note though that Wall Street analysts lowered the earnings bar in a big way prior to the reporting.

All eyes are now turning to the Federal Reserve meeting this week. Once again, it is expected that federal funds rate will be raised 25 basis points for the 10th straight hike over the past year. Some feel this could be the final increase, while others lean toward one more hike in June.

Treasury yields jumped higher across the curve, as bond market participants also will be watching and listening to commentary from the Fed. The 10-year note closed at 3.55% on Monday, while the two-year paper finished the day at 4.12%. The continuing inversion suggests recession is on the way.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both started the weak lower, following through on last week’s nearly 1.5% decline. The selling was prompted in part by the pending rate increase and weaker-than-expected economic data out of China. While the energy complex has given back most of the gains since the OPEC production cuts, analysts expect the group to keep a lid on production, and higher prices could be forthcoming. Natural gas closed down 4% at $2.31.
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Gold started off the week lower, closing down almost 0.5% at $1,989.70, while Bitcoin was the big loser on the day, closing down a stunning 4.65% at $27,889.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday, May 2, 2023.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL): BofA Securities reiterated a Neutral rating and lifted its $168 target price to $173. The consensus target is $170.89. The final trade on Monday was for $169.59 a share.

Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU): Bernstein upgraded the stock to Outperform from Market Perform and has set a $160 target price. The consensus target is $180.66, and shares closed on Monday at $121.28.
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Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB): Guggenheim upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and lifted the target price to $350 from $270. The consensus target is $325.04. The shares closed on Monday at $311.11.
Braze Inc. (NASDAQ: BRZE): As Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating, it raised its $36 target price to $38. The consensus target is $40.77, and the stock closed on Monday at $29.42.

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP): The BMO Capital Markets downgrade was to Market Perform from Outperform, and the $140 target price fell to $133. The consensus target is $139.40 for now. The stock closed down almost 7% on Monday at $118.52 despite a solid first-quarter report.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA): BofA Securities raised its Neutral rating to Buy from and its $35 price target to $45. The consensus target is $43.97. The stock closed on Monday at $41.64.

Danaher Corp. (NYSE: DHR): SVB Securities started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $300 target price. The consensus target is $282.30. Shares closed on Monday at $241.72.

Doximity Inc. (NYSE: DOCS): Wells Fargo’s downgrade to Equal Weight from Overweight included a target price trim to $35 from $37. The consensus target is $37.86. Monday’s close at $35.83 was down almost 3% for the day on the downgrade.

Essex Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: ESS): Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral. It also raised its $242 price target to $271, well above the $235.05 consensus target. The stock closed on Monday at $220.68.

Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL): Oppenheimer’s $290 target price increased to $300 as the analyst reiterated an Outperform rating. The $289.85 consensus target is closer to Monday’s closing print of $246.87.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM): Goldman Sachs downgraded the energy leader from Buy to Neutral with a $125 target price. That compares with the $128.96 consensus target and Monday’s close at $114.67, which was down 3% on the day after the downgrade.

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM): When Morgan Stanley upgraded the shares to Overweight from Equal Weight, it bumped its $35 target price up to $38. The consensus target is higher at $47.70. Monday’s close was at $33.47.
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Hub Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HUBG): Stifel lowered its $110 target price on the Buy-rated shares to $94. The consensus target is $98.62, but the most recent close was at $76.16.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Morgan Stanley’s upgrade to Equal Weight from Underweight came with a target price hike to $56 from $40. The consensus target is $55.17. Monday’s close was at $60.98.

Nextracker Inc. (NASDAQ: NXT): Northland Securities started coverage with a Market Perform rating and a $32 target price. The consensus target is $39.38. The stock closed on Monday at $30.87.

O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) Oppenheimer raised its $890 target price on the Outperform-rated shares to $1,000. The consensus target is $964.70. The stock closed on Monday at $929.60.
Otis Worldwide Corp. (NYSE: OTIS): Wells Fargo’s upgrade was to Equal Weight from Underweight, and its $75 target price is now $88. The consensus target is $86.41. The shares ended Monday at $85.96.

Playtika Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTK): Citigroup resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and an $11 price target. The consensus target is $14.19. Monday’s $10.35 close was up almost 4% for the day.

Power Integrations Inc. (NASDAQ: POWI): The Market Perform rating at Northland Capital is now Outperform, and the analyst boosted the $66 target price to $82. The consensus target is $85.17. The last trade Monday came in at $74.96, which was up 3% for the day on the upgrade.

Principal Financial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: PFG): The BofA Securities downgrade was to Neutral from Buy, and its target price dropped to $78 from $81. The consensus target is $76.15. Monday’s close was at $73.98.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (NYSE: SMG): Stifel upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold. It also raised its $65 target price to $80, just shy of the $80.29 consensus target. Monday’s $70.48 close was up over 5% on the day after the upgrade.
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Teradata Corp. (NYSE: TDC): Guggenheim raised its Neutral rating to Buy with a $62 price target. The consensus target is $46.39. Monday’s close at $41.03 was up 6% for the day on the upgrade.

Tractor Supply Co. (NASDAQ: TSCO): Oppenheimer’s $270 target price rose to $280 and the Outperform rating remained. The consensus target is $253.80. Monday’s close was at $238.95.

Zillow Inc. (NYSE: ZG): The upgrade at Bernstein was to Market Perform from Underperform, and it boosted its target price to $45 from $35. The consensus target is $49.95. Monday’s close was at $43.25.
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Four top companies are Wall Street favorites and are expected to raise their dividends this week, showing that each company is doing well and has the earnings and cash flow strength to increase its payout despite rising interest rates, inflation and economic uncertainty.

Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Amazon.com, Bluebird Bio, Carnival, Fortinet, General Motors, Gilead Sciences, Hasbro, Hershey, Intel, International Paper, Masco, Mobileye Global, Salesforce, Snap and Waste Management.

The post Tuesday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Apple, Baidu, Comcast, Exxon Mobil, General Motors and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures were higher on Thursday, after a rough day across Wall Street Wednesday as all the major indexes closed lower. That was due to a combination of less than stellar earnings and the fact that many analysts and strategists feel that there is a strong possibility that recession will take current forward estimates considerably lower. Add to the mix, continued massive tech layoffs, the prospect of more interest rate hikes, deteriorating financial conditions and inflation numbers that were trending down but could turn higher again as oil and other commodities spike.

Treasury yields were once again flat to modestly lower across the curve Wednesday, after a big spike to the upside over the past week. Short rates continue to dwarf the long end of the curve, as the two-year and 10-year inversion plainly shows. The short paper closed Wednesday at 4.43%, while the longer note ended the day at 3.65%. The 78-basis-point difference is the widest since 1981 and suggests recession is on the way.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude finished the day higher, both closing up almost 2%, following a big move earlier in the week. The U.S. Energy Information Administration confirmed a build of 2.4 million barrels in inventory. This came as an Iranian representative said oil could hit $100 per barrel in the latter half of 2023 if China’s demand returns. Natural gas closed the day down over 7% at $2.40. Gold closed slightly higher, while Bitcoin was down over 1% to close below $23,000.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.
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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday, February 9, 2023.

American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL): Redburn upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and has a $25 target price. The consensus target is $16.57, lower than Wednesday’s close at $16.98 a share.

American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP): Morgan Stanley raised its Equal Weight rating to Overweight with a $186 target price. The consensus target is $183.75. The shares closed on Wednesday at $179.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO): Barclays began coverage of the retailer with an Overweight rating and a $2,663 price objective. The consensus target is $2,634.20, and the stock closed at $2423.36 on Wednesday.
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Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY): Barclays started coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $88 target price. The consensus target is $83.87. The stock closed on Wednesday at $86.40.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CHK): Citigroup started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $90 target price. The consensus target is up at $130.40. Wednesday’s close was at $81.98.
Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL): Redburn’s upgrade was from Neutral to Buy with a $55 target price. The consensus target is $51.00. The final trade on Wednesday was for $39.44 a share.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS): Morgan Stanley’s downgrade was from Overweight to Equal Weight with a $96 price objective. The consensus target is higher at $115.85. The stock closed on  Wednesday at $115.60.

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG): Barclays began coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $237 target price. The consensus target is $264.92. The stock closed at $227.64 on Wednesday.

Duck Creek Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: DCT): D.A. Davidson’s downgrade to Neutral from Buy included a target price cut to $19 from $22. The consensus target is $16.00. The stock closed on Wednesday at $18.80.

Enphase Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: ENPH): Oppenheimer maintained an Outperform rating and raised its $323 target price to $328. The consensus target is $300.21. The stock closed over 4% lower on Wednesday at $218.87. The company posted strong earnings.

Fortinet Inc. (NASDAQ: FTNT): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating with a $70 target price. The consensus target is $64.03. Wednesday’s close at $59.64 was up almost 11% on the day following outstanding numbers for the quarter.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS): Wells Fargo reiterated an Overweight rating and lifted its $390 target price to $420. The consensus target is $394.46. Wednesday’s close was at $375.10.

Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN): J.P. Morgan downgraded the stock to Neutral from Overweight. It also trimmed its $22 target price to $21, further from the $23.08 consensus target. The stock closed 10% lower on Wednesday at $19.02 after earnings beat estimates but sales dropped.

KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR): Goldman Sachs lifted its $61 target price to $68 while keeping a Buy rating. The consensus target is $66.57. Wednesday’s last trade came in at $58.27.
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Lamb Weston Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LW): The Zacks Bull of the Day stock should do well regardless of whether a recession comes, says the analyst. Shares of the packaged foods company last closed at $98.99 apiece, and the $106.67 consensus price target would be a 52-week high.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Citing an earnings and revenue outlook trending in the wrong direction, Zacks selected this stock as its Bear of the Day. Shares have traded as high as $82.06 in the past year but closed most recently at $58.03. That is down almost 7% year to date.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating and has a $400 target price. The consensus target is $377.89. On Wednesday, the closing share price was $309.28.

Lumen Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LUMN): Citigroup downgraded the stock to Sell from Neutral and slashed its $6.25 target price to $3.50. The consensus target is $6.10 for now. Wednesday’s close at $3.95 was down 21% on the day after the company beat consensus estimates but gave dreadful forward guidance.
Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU): Stifel raised its $52 price target to $55 while keeping a Hold rating. The consensus target is higher at $64.17. Wednesday’s $60.25 close was down 3% for the day.

Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE: NTR): TD Securities cut its Buy rating to Hold. Its $91 price objective is less than the $98.90 consensus target. Wednesday’s close at $78.17 was down almost 4% on the day.

Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC): When Morgan Stanley upgraded the advertising behemoth to Equal Weight from Underweight, it hiked its $85 price target to $95. The consensus target is $83.30. The stock closed on Wednesday at $92.88.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL): The BofA Securities upgrade was to Neutral from Underperform. The analyst raised the $40 price target to $78, well above the $69.29 consensus figure. The stock closed on Wednesday at $74.51.

TripAdvisor Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP): As BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Underperform, it raised its $19 target price to $38. The consensus target is $24.33. The double upgrade had shares closing almost 4% higher on Wednesday at $25.09.

United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: UAL): The Sell rating at Redburn is now at Neutral, with a $55 target price. The consensus target is $57.38. Wednesday’s close was at $50.77.

United Rental Inc. (NYSE: URI): Credit Suisse initiated coverage with an Outperform rating. Its $544 target price compares with the $443.50 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing print of $458.04.
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Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT): Barclays initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $159 target price. The consensus target is $140.22. The stock closed Wednesday’s session at $140.22.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): Barclays upgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Underweight and has a $70 target. The consensus target is $52.52. Wednesday’s close was at $62.46.

Werner Enterprises Inc. (NASDAQ: WERN): Goldman Sachs boosted its $36 target price on the Sell-rated shares to $40. The consensus target is higher at $47.71. The stock closed on Wednesday at $47.90.
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With all signs pointing to a looming recession, alternative assets are in demand. Six top gold stocks are rated Buy at BofA Securities and come with respectable dividends, making them great ideas now for worried investors.

Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alcoa, Cloudflare, Foot Locker, Fortinet, Lockheed Martin, On Semiconductor, Ovintiv, Pfizer, Take-Two Interactive Software, Tyson Foods and ZoomInfo Technologies.

The post Thursday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: American Airlines, American Express, Best Buy, Dollar General, Goldman Sachs, Royal Caribbean, Walmart and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures traded higher Thursday after a wretched risk-off day after the election that saw all the major indexes close down big. The Nasdaq led the massacre, closing 2.48% lower. The lack of a Republican red wave, the fact that once again the final results may not be known until December, the crypto debacle with Binance’s proposed takeover of FTX, which looks sketchy now, and some messy numbers from Disney all contributed to the big move lower. Toss in the still red-hot inflation numbers Thursday morning and the path of least resistance could be lower.

Treasury rates were mixed across the curve Wednesday, with the biggest selling coming on the long end as the yield on the benchmark 30-year bond closed at 4.32%, up six basis points. The two-year and 10-year inversion remains in place, with the short note closing at 4.59% and the other at 4.15%. The spread has widened over the past few weeks, and bond traders see it as a recession harbinger.

A large crude oil inventory build was blamed for Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude getting hammered Wednesday, as they ended the day down 3.15% and 3.78%, respectively. Gold ended the day lower, while the aforementioned cryptocurrency implosion knocked Bitcoin down another 15% to the lowest level in two years.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.
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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday, November 10, 2022.

Affirm Inc. (NASDAQ: AFRM): Deutsche Bank reiterated a Hold rating on the buy now, pay later company and lowered the price target to $14 from $22. The consensus target is $29.60. The stock was bushwhacked Wednesday, closing down almost 23% at $12.10, after reporting a first-quarter loss and offering a much lower full-year outlook.

Amdocs Ltd. (NASDAQ: DOX): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating and has an $84 target price. The stock has traded as high as $90.77 in the past year but closed Wednesday at $81.71.

Anika Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIK): Barrington Research upgraded the stock to Outperform from Market Perform and has a $31 target price. The consensus target is $36. The stock closed over 8% higher on Wednesday at $29.60 despite mixed quarterly results.
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Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN): The Daiwa Securities downgrade to Neutral from Buy included a target price cut to $52 from $82. That compares with the $85.76 consensus and Wednesday’s closing print of $45.98, which was down almost 10% as the cryptocurrency commotion continues.

Dominion Energy Inc. (NYSE: D): BofA Securities downgraded the utility to Neutral from Buy. It also lowered its $94 target price to $59, well below the $78.36 consensus target. The shares closed Wednesday at $60.42, down over 3% for the day, despite earnings that beat estimates last week.
Everest Re Group Ltd. (NYSE: RE): Morgan Stanley’s downgrade was from Overweight to Equal Weight with a $320 target price . No consensus target was not available. Wednesday’s close was at $320.04.

E.W. Scripps Co. (NYSE: SSP): Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the target price to $11 from $20. The consensus target is $17.00. The last trade for Wednesday was posted at $10.39, down 10% on the day after the company missed earnings and revenue estimates.

First Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: FBMS): Janney’s upgrade to Buy from Neutral came with a $33.50 price target bumped up to $39. The consensus target is $37.15. Wednesday’s close was at $32.86.

Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN): Barclays initiated coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $97 target price. Shares have traded as high as $147.04 in the past year, but Thursday’s close was at $85.58.

GoodRx Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: GDRX): Goldman Sachs lowered its price target on the Neutral-rated shares to $8 from $10. The consensus target is $9.27. The stock closed on Wednesday at $4.06, down 22%, despite beating estimates, due to weak forward guidance.

GXO Logistics Inc. (NYSE: GXO): Oppenheimer maintained an Outperform rating with a $78 target price. The consensus target is $63.94. The stock ended Wednesday trading at $36.99.

ICON PLC (NASDAQ: ICLR): Though BofA Securities raised its Neutral rating to Buy, it also trimmed its $265 target price to $260. The consensus target is $254.60. The stock closed on Wednesday at $196.79.

IGM Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: IGMS): Jefferies resumed coverage with a Buy rating and lowered its $61 price target to $55. The consensus target is $39.64. The stock closed almost 7% lower on Wednesday at $16.05.

International Flavors Inc. (NYSE: IFF): J.P. Morgan’s downgrade was to Neutral from Overweight. The analyst also cut the $125 target price to $96, closer to the $91.58 consensus target. The last trade for Wednesday was reported at $91.58.
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Kite Realty Group Trust (NYSE: KRG): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and nudged its $22 price target up to $25. The consensus target is $24.30. The stock closed at $20.54 on Wednesday.

Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR): Evercore ISI’s upgrade to Outperform from In Line included a target price boost to $56 from $49. The consensus target is $53.39. Wednesday’s $48.06 closed was up 2% for the day.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Barclays started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $65 target price. The consensus target is higher at $123.81. Wednesday’s final trade hit the tape at $53.82.

Lumentum Inc. (NASDAQ: LITE): Northland Capital downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Outperform. It also slashed its $120 target price to $55, while the consensus target is $95.86 for now. The shares ended Wednesday at $55.25, down over 6% on the day despite posting solid results earlier in the week.
Nasdaq Inc. (NASDAQ: NDAQ): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its $65 target price to $71. The consensus target is $65.44. Wednesday’s close was at $63.61.

Nexstar Media Group Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST): Wells Fargo downgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Overweight and lowered the $227 target price to $175. The consensus target is $230.22. The stock closed on Wednesday at $158.94, a retreat of 5% for the day, despite posting a solid earnings report.

PACCAR Inc. (NASDAQ: PCAR): Zacks has selected this truck maker as its Bull of the Day stock, citing resilient demand for its products and the stock as an excellent value play. Shares hit a 52-week high of $101.51 on Wednesday and are up about 17% in the past six months.

Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG): Oppenheimer stuck with an Outperform rating but cut its $63 price target in half to $31. The consensus target is $33.31 for now. The shares closed on Wednesday at $14.61.

PubMatic Inc. (NASDAQ: PUBM): Oppenheimer lowered its $28 target price to $23 but maintained an Outperform rating. The consensus target is $27.25 for now. Wednesday’s last trade at $13.86 was down over 14% for the day, after beating estimates but giving disappointing forward guidance.
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Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN): BofA Securities downgraded the stock to Underperform from Neutral and cut the $73 price target to $61. The consensus target is up at $86.99. The stock ended Wednesday’s session over 5% lower at $64.13, likely on the downgrade.

Unisys Corp. (NYSE: UIS): Canaccord Genuity downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy and hammered its $20 target price down to $5. The consensus target is $18.00 for now. Wednesday’s close at $4.39 was down over 5% on the day.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating on the entertainment giant while cutting its $137 target price to $118. The consensus target is near $122 for now. The stock closed Wednesday at $86.75, down 13% after results missed estimates due in part to massive streaming costs.
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Five safe, dividend-paying stocks may be the place to be if we see a huge pullback into the end of the year. These Dividend Kings have raised their payouts to shareholders for at least 50 consecutive years, making them outstanding ideas for nervous investors now.

Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Amgen, Archer Daniels Midland, Eli Lilly, Home Depot, Medtronic, Palantir Technologies, Snowflake, Take-Two Interactive Software, Viatris and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

The post Thursday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Affirm, Coinbase, Disney, GoodRx, Kroger, Plug Power, Tyson Foods and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures were higher, as we prepare to start another week of late summer trading, which as usual in August will continue to slow to a crawl as we get closer to Labor Day. The major indexes closed mostly lower on Friday despite the massive July jobs report, in which some 528,000 jobs were added, clobbering expectations for 250,000. While it seems counterintuitive when adding jobs seems positive for the economy, the reality is that any chance that the Federal Reserve will take its foot off the interest rate pedal was squashed Friday by the strength of the report.

All eyes this week will be on the July consumer price index report, which comes out before Wednesday’s opening bell. Should it come in hot like June’s numbers, the rate hike chatter could move from the current 50 to 75 basis points range to a full percentage point for the September hike.

Yields across the Treasury curve shot higher on the jobs numbers, with the five-year note up a stunning 20 basis points, after two weeks of heavy Treasury buying. As mentioned, red-hot inflation numbers this week again will just enforce the hawkish Fed narrative.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed flat Friday, after giving up some solid early gains. Analysts cited demand destruction due to recession fears, as oil prices have fallen back to where they were before the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Natural gas closed just under the $8 mark, while gold ended lower and Bitcoin was up over 1%.
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24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Monday, August 8, 2022.

Allegheny Technology Inc. (NYSE: ATI): Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to Outperform from Peer Perform and has a $33 target. The consensus target is $33.43. Friday’s close at $29.02 was up almost 6% for the day after second-quarter results came in above estimates.

Ball Corp. (NASDAQ: BALL): Deutsche Bank downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy and cut the $81 price objective to $65. The consensus target is $83.94. Friday’s was at $56.36, down almost 5% on the day, after the company missed earnings expectations last week.
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Carvana Inc. (NYSE: CVNA): RBC Capital Markets reiterated a Sector Perform rating but chopped the $85 target price to $35. The consensus target is $65.75. The shares closed up a stunning 40% on Friday to $46.98. The company posted results that missed expectations, but it laid out cost-cutting plans that went over big with Wall Street. Note that the stock also has a big short interest number.

Cavco Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: CVCO): Wedbush’s upgrade to Outperform from Neutral included a target price hike to $385 from $315. The consensus target is $339. The stock closed over 7% higher on Friday at $274.30 after smashing earnings estimates.
Clearwater Paper Corp. (NYSE: CLW): Zacks selected this as its Bull of the Day. The analyst suggests that only stocks that are in extremely powerful uptrends are able to make this type of price move while the market is in a correction. Shares last closed at $43.22, after rising about 38% in the past 90 days. The S&P 500 is up only fractionally in that time.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA): Redburn downgraded the media and cable giant to Neutral from Buy. Over the past year, the stock has traded between $36.57 and $61.80 a share, and it has a $48.38 consensus price objective. The shares closed on Friday at $38.27.

Constellation Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CEG): UBS raised its Hold rating to Buy and boosted the $54 target price to $97. The consensus target is $68.27. The shares closed over 10% higher on Friday at $74.30.

Doximity Inc. (NYSE: DOCS): BofA Securities downgraded the stock from Underperform to Neutral and cut the $43 price target to $29. The consensus target is up at $47.46. The shares closed on Friday at $41.6

EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE: EOG): TD Securities upgraded the energy giant from Hold to Buy with a $135 target price. The consensus target is $145.02. The last trade on Friday came in at $107.01, up over 7% on the day after posting solid results.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR): J.P. Morgan upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral and raised the target price in a big way to $126 from $83. Guggenheim raised its Neutral rating to Buy with a $135 target. The consensus target is $99.47. The shares closed on Friday at $101.90. The stock was up over 6% in premarket action.

Fisker Inc. (NYSE: FSR): Morgan Stanley downgraded the electric vehicle maker’s shares to Equal Weight from Overweight and has a $10 target price. The consensus target is up at $17.44. The stock closed on Friday at $10.17.

Fox Factory Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: FOXF): Stifel’s upgrade to Buy from Hold included a price target boost to $115 from $88. The consensus target is $120.50. The stock closed up over 12% Friday at $106.05, after earnings and revenue for the quarter beat estimates.
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Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE: IR): Deutsche Bank cut its Buy rating to Hold but nudged the price target up to $52 from $50. The consensus target is $51.07. The stock closed on Friday at $49.79.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Zacks named this as its Bear of the Day stock, pointing out that the odds are stacked against this device maker. The stock has traded as high as $109.67 in the past year but closed most recently at $58.31, which is down almost 30% year to date.

Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST): RBC Capital Markets reiterated an Outperform rating but trimmed its $100 price objective to $98. That compares with a $102.72 consensus target and Friday’s close at $91.38, which was down over 5% after earnings missed estimates while sales beat expectations.

Omega Healthcare Investors Inc. (NYSE: OHI): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and lifted the $27 target price to $35. The consensus target is $30.93. The shares ended trading on Friday at $31.99, up 2% for the day.
Paramount Global (NASDAQ: PARA): J.P. Morgan downgraded the shares from Neutral to Underweight with a $25 target. The consensus target is $31.32 for now. The last trade Friday was recorded at $24.26, which was down over 4% for the day on no news other than the downgrade.

Physicians Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: DOC): Colliers Securities cut its Buy rating to Neutral with a $19 target price. The consensus target is $19.07. The stock ended Friday’s session at $17.24.

Playtika Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: PLTK): MKM Partners downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and lowered the $17 price target to $13.50. The consensus target is $20.59. The stock closed 3% lower on  Friday at $11.77.

Twilio Inc. (NYSE: TWLO): When Stifel downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy, it slashed its $200 target price in half to $90. The consensus target is $178.41 for now. The last trade for Friday came in at $84.92, down close to 14% on the day. Solid earnings were overshadowed after the company reported miserable third-quarter guidance.

Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR): Susquehanna downgraded the stock to Neutral from Positive. It also dropped its $50 price objective to $45. The consensus target is $43.05. The stock had a solid session Friday, closing up almost 4% at $42.52.

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPCE): Truist Financial’s downgrade to Sell from Hold included a target price cut to $5 from $8. The consensus target is $9.05. The shares closed Friday at $6.76, down almost 18% after the company pushed back the start date for its first commercial space flights.

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ: WBD): Wells Fargo slashed its target price in half, to $19 from $42. The consensus target is at $$29.25 for now. The shares closed Friday at $14.59, down a sharp 17% after the company posted a stunning $3.42 billion loss.

Zillow Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ZG): Wedbush downgraded the online real estate site to Neutral from Outperform and trimmed the $41 target price to $39. The consensus target is $46.42. The shares down 2% on Friday at $37.37.
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Seven stocks with huge dividends are Buy rated across Wall Street and most of them have the best entry points since last year. These BDCs, REITs and others offer outstanding total return potential for income investors with a degree of risk tolerance.

JetBlue and Under Armour are among the well-known stocks that have huge upside potential and cost less than $10 a share.
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Friday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included America Movil, Ball, Ciena, Costco Wholesale, Dish Network, Fortinet, Infinera, Levi Strauss, Match, RingCentral, Robinhood Markets and Yum! Brands. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Acadia Pharmaceuticals, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Duke Energy, Kellogg, Paramount Global, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and more.

The post Monday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Carvana, Comcast, Fisker, Monster Beverage, Twilio, Twitter, Virgin Galactic, Warner Bros Discovery and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Markets edged higher to start Thursday, following some positive news in the labor market. Weekly jobless claims, announced early Thursday, came in at 187,000, which is a low not seen in the past 50 years. Consensus estimates were calling for around 210,000. New jobless claims are at their lowest level since September 1969, and continuing claims fell to 1.35 million, the lowest level since 1970.

Even though there is obvious strength in the labor market as more Americans are returning to work, inflation is still a top concern for many. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has been fairly sanguine on the labor market recently, and this has contributed in part to the Fed’s decision to raise interest rates going forward.

24/7 Wall St. is reviewing more analyst calls seen on Thursday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on Adobe, Carnival, Nio, Nvidia, Startbucks and many more.

Alcoa Corp. (NYSE: AA): Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight but raised the price target to $100 from $78. The 52-week trading range is $27.55 to $95.79, and shares were trading near $93 on Thursday.

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British American Tobacco PLC (NYSE: BTI): J.P. Morgan upgraded shares to Overweight from Neutral. The stock traded near $42 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $33.62 to $47.24.

Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF): Citigroup resumed coverage with a Buy rating and raised the $185 price target to $189. The 52-week trading range is $121.44 to $177.95, and shares were trading near $135 apiece on Thursday.

EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE: EOG): The TD Securities downgrade was from Buy to Hold with a $140 price target. The stock was trading near $122 on Thursday, and the 52-week range is $62.81 to $124.89.

iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT): Northland Capital raised its Market Perform rating to Outperform with an $85 price target. Shares were trading near $68 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $53.10 to $125.35.

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (NYSE: IFF): Berenberg’s downgrade to Hold from Buy included a price target cut to $144 from $165. Shares were trading near $124 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $113.40 to $157.08.

Johnson Controls International PLC (NYSE: JCI): When Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold, it also trimmed the $80 price target to $79. Shares were trading near $65. The 52-week range is $58.15 to $81.77.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): BofA Securities initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $107 price target. The 52-week trading range is $67.36 to $140.17, and shares were trading near $76 on Thursday.

PaySign Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYS): Ladenburg Thalmann downgraded it to Neutral from Buy. The stock traded near $2 a share on Thursday. The 52-week range is $1.37 to $4.69.

Post Holdings Inc. (NYSE: POST): Truist lowered its Buy rating to Hold and slashed the 120 price target to $70. The 52-week trading range is $61.68 to $77.43, and shares were trading near $64 apiece on Thursday.

Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: RETA): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $91 price target. The stock was trading near $38 on Thursday, and the 52-week range is $22.71 to $153.41.

Traeger Inc. (NYSE: COOK): Jefferies downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy, and the firm dropped the $25 price target to $7. Stifel’s downgrade was from Buy to Hold with a $7.50 price target. The stock was trading near $7 on Thursday, and the 52-week range is $6.82 to $32.59.

Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG): Pareto lifted its Sell rating to Hold with a $5 price target. The stock was trading near $4.50 on Thursday, and the 52-week range is $2.63 to $5.56.

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE: SPGI): Credit Suisse resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and a $495 price target. Shares were trading near $407 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $347.80 to $484.21.

Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE): The Overweight rating at Morgan Stanley was lowered to Equal Weight, but the firm raised the price target to $22 from $19. Shares were trading near $20 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $11.16 to $23.18.

Werner Enterprises Inc. (NASDAQ: WERN): Wells Fargo upgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Underweight and raised the price target to $46 from $38. Shares were trading near $42. The 52-week range is $41.44 to $49.76.

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With the first quarter about to end, many investors are reviewing their portfolios and making changes. Five Jefferies Franchise List picks make sense for growth and income investors looking to shift to a safer profile for the rest of what could be a very turbulent year.

The post 50-Year Jobless Claims Record, and More Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Alcoa, Transocean, Vale and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Markets edged lower to close out the week. Also, the February employment report showed stronger-than-expected jobs numbers. U.S. employers added 678,000 jobs as Omicron-related cases continue to fall. The unemployment rate improved, as well, to 3.8% which is the lowest since February 2020, prior to the pandemic.

24/7 Wall St. is reviewing some big analyst calls seen on Friday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on Chevron, Citigroup, Costco, Intel and many more.

AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV): Canaccord Genuity upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold and raised the price target to $85 from $64. The 52-week trading range is $52.03 to $128.98, and shares were trading near $74 apiece Friday.

Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY): Raymond James downgraded it to Market Perform from Outperform. Telsey Advisory reiterated an Outperform rating and raised its $125 price target to $130. The 52-week trading range is $85.58 to $141.97, and shares were trading near $107 apiece on Friday.
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Bright Health Group Inc. (NYSE: BHG): The RBC Capital Markets downgrade to Sector Perform from Outperform included a price target cut to $3 from $9. Shares were trading near $2 on Friday. The 52-week range is $2.04 to $17.93.

Cambium Networks Corp. (NASDAQ: CMBM): Jefferies downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy and cut the $38 price target to $25. Shares were trading near $25 on Friday. The 52-week range is $18.95 to $66.40.

Equitrans Midstream Corp. (NYSE: ETRN): Goldman Sachs raised its Neutral rating to  Buy with a $9 price target. Shares were trading near $7 on Friday. The 52-week range is $5.87 to $11.52.

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE: KNX): Susquehanna upgraded the stock to Positive from Neutral and raised the price target to $69 from $62. Shares were trading near $55 on Friday. The 52-week range is $43.53 to $62.29.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Loop Capital upgraded it to Buy from Hold and raised the price target to $110 from $80. The stock was trading near $76 on Friday, and the 52-week range is $69.92 to $140.17.

Marvell Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MRVL): The Summit Insights downgrade was to Hold from Buy. Needham reiterated a Buy rating and cut the price target to $105 from $115. Shares were trading near $67. The 52-week range is $37.92 to $93.85.

Sea Ltd. (NYSE: SE): J.P. Morgan downgraded the shares to Neutral from Overweight and cut the $250 price target all the way to $105. The 52-week trading range is $103.00 to $372.70, and shares were trading near $104 apiece Friday.

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: SIX): Deutsche Bank’s upgrade to Buy from Hold came with a price target hike to $57 from $45. The stock was trading around $42 on Friday, and the 52-week range is $35.75 to $51.75.
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Six Goldman Sachs stock picks offer a blend of high dividend yield and strong forecast dividend growth, making them ideal for income and growth investors worried about inflation and the very volatile stock market.

See how NFTs may be making climate change worse and how much short sellers have been rewarded for betting against Russian stocks.
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The post Friday Afternoon’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Best Buy, Marvell Technology, Sea Ltd., Six Flags and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Markets dipped to start out Tuesday, as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continued. One definitive ramification of this conflict has been rising energy prices, as investors are watching West Texas Intermediate crude hit its highest level in the past eight years. Reaching back even further than that was the Nasdaq, as this major average posted its worst start to the year (January and February) since 2009, down over 12%.

24/7 Wall St. is reviewing some big analyst calls seen on Tuesday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on Block, Cheniere Energy, Datadog, Foot Locker, Kroger, Workday and many more.

Advanced Drainage Systems Inc. (NYSE: WMS): Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal Weight and has a $145 price target. The 52-week trading range is $93.66 to $138.02, and shares were trading near $118 apiece Tuesday.

BP Midstream Partners L.P. (NYSE: BPMP): Citigroup downgraded it from Neutral to Sell with a $16 price target. The 52-week trading range is $11.50 to $19.37, and shares were trading near $16 apiece on Tuesday.

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Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR): Truist’s downgrade was to Hold from Buy, and it cut the $830 price target to $600. Shares were trading near $599 on Tuesday. The 52-week range is $549.59 to $825.62.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA): Truist also downgraded this one to Hold from Buy. Shares were trading near $47 on Tuesday. The 52-week range is $44.27 to $61.80.

Farfetch Ltd. (NYSE: FTCH): Societe Generale’s upgrade to Hold from Sell included a price target cut to $23 from $26. Shares were trading near $19 on Tuesday. The 52-week range is $12.36 to $64.49.

GoodRx Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: GDRX): Credit Suisse downgraded it to Neutral from Outperform and cut the price target to $27 from $41. Cowen downgraded the shares to Market Perform from Outperform and slashed the $49 price target to $22. Shares were trading near $17 on Tuesday. The 52-week range is $17.01 to $48.05.

Lincoln National Corp. (NYSE: LNC): The Goldman Sachs downgrade was from Buy to Neutral with a $74 price target. Shares were trading near $66. The 52-week range is $55.01 to $77.57.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Wedbush raised its Neutral rating to Outperform and has a $90 price target. The stock was trading near $77 on Tuesday, and the 52-week range is $69.92 to $140.17.

Turtle Beach Corp. (NASDAQ: HEAR): Wedbush downgraded the stock to Neutral from Outperform, and it cut $27 the price target to $24. The 52-week trading range is $17.03 to $38.70, and shares were trading near $23 apiece Tuesday.

Vroom Inc. (NASDAQ: VRM): Wells Fargo downgraded it to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $16 price target to $6. The stock was trading above $4 on Tuesday, and the 52-week range is $4.31 to $49.03.

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The post Tuesday Afternoon’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Comcast, Farfetch, Vroom and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The futures were down on Tuesday after the latest Producer Price Index numbers and after a serious risk-off Monday in which all the major indexes and the transports closed down big. The selling was not surprising after the markets posted the best week in 10 months last week. Again the blame from some pundits across Wall Street was the Omicron variant, (which posted its first reported death Monday) despite some reasonably good chatter about existing vaccines and those in the works.

In addition, monetary policy remains front and center, as portfolio managers and traders price in a faster increase in tapering and an early lift off for rate increases. Treasury buyers were seen across the curve as yields declined.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday, December 14, 2021.
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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL): BofA Securities raised the technology heavyweight to Buy from Neutral and raised the price target to $210 from $160. The consensus target is $172.55. The stock closed Monday at $175.74.

Avalara Inc. (NASDAQ: AVLR): Goldman Sachs began covering the stock with a Buy rating and a $200 price target, which is lower than the consensus of $212.17. Monday’s closing trade was reported at $142.94.

Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND): Piper Sandler raised the plant-based food stock to Neutral from Underweight and nudged the $61 target price to $64. The consensus target is higher at $74.14. Monday’s closing share price was $63.42.

Cambium Networks Corp. (NASDAQ: CMBM): JPMorgan downgraded the stock to Neutral from Overweight and slashed the price target to $30 from $49. The consensus target is $52.38. The last trade on Monday was reported at $22.99.
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Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CHK): Johnson Rice raised the stock to Buy from Accumulate. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded in a range of $40.00 to $69.40, and it has a massive $92.89 consensus price target. The last trade on Monday was reported at $61.91, which was down almost 3% on the day.

Chewy Inc. (NYSE: CHWY): Zacks named this as its Bear of the Day stock, pointing out that shares have mostly tumbled amid slowing growth and a wide-ranging recalibration of pandemic high-flyers. The stock last closed at $55.26, though they have traded as high as $120.00 in the past year.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD): JPMorgan raised the cybersecurity leader to Overweight from Neutral and has a $255 price target. That compares with the higher $297.54 consensus target and Monday’s closing print of $198.68.

DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ: DKNG): MoffettNathanson started coverage with a Neutral rating and $36 price target. The consensus target is a stunning $63.04. The stock was last seen on Monday at $28.85, after retreating over 5% on basically no news.

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT): Keefe Bruyette upgraded the stock from Market Perform to Outperform with a $51 price target. The consensus target is $56.70, and the closing price on Monday was $43.99 per share.

Gildan Activewear Inc. (NYSE: GIL): The apparel maker is in the midst of a big comeback year and its long-term outlook is strong, says Zacks, which selected it as the Bull of the Day stock. Shares last closed at $40.31 and have a consensus price target of $42.28.
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Globus Medical Inc. (NYSE: GMED): BofA Securities raised Underperform rating to Buy and boosted the $55 target price to $80. That compares with a $85.71 consensus and Monday’s final trade at $68.96 per share.

GXO Logistics Inc. (NYSE: GXO): Loop Capital raised the stock to Buy from Neutral. Over the past year, the stock has traded between $61.05 and $105.92. The consensus price target is $103. The last trade for Monday came in at $86.51.

HireQuest Inc. (NASDAQ: HQI): D.A. Davidson began coverage of the stock with a Buy rating and a $26 price target. Monday’s closing print was $19.78 a share.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Deutsche Bank began coverage with a Buy rating. The 52-week trading range is $76.70 to $140.17, and the consensus price target is $123.81. The final trade for Monday came in at $81.83.
MKS Instruments Inc. (NYSE: MKS): Citigroup upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and has a $190 target price. The consensus price objective is up at $213.20. The final Monday trade came in at $157.15, which was down almost 3% for the day.

Paycor HCM Inc. (NASDAQ: PYCR): Goldman Sachs started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $31 price target. The consensus price objective is $41.45. Monday’s last trade was reported at $29.62.

Qualtrics International Inc. (NASDAQ: XM): Goldman Sachs began coverage with a Buy rating and a $53 price target. The consensus price objective is $54.36. Monday’s closing trade was at $33.46.

SAP S.E. (NYSE: SAP): UBS raised the European software giant to Buy from Neutral The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $120.08 and $151.48, and it has a consensus target price of $157.75. The last trade on Monday hit the tape at $137.95.

Sono Group N.V. (NASDAQ: SEV): Berenberg started coverage with a Buy rating and a $21 price target, while Craig Hallum also began covering the company with Buy rating but a $23 price objective. No consensus target was available as the stock had a recent initial public offering. The shares pulled back almost 9% on Monday to close at $13.00.

TaskUs Inc. (NASDAQ: TASK): Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal Weight and jacked the $37 target price to $55, which compares with the massive $66.17 consensus target and Monday’s closing print of $42.85.

Tata Motors Ltd. (NYSE: TTM): BofA Securities resumed coverage with a Neutral rating. Over the past 52 weeks, the shares have traded between $11.01 and $35.38, and the consensus price objective is $36.47. Monday’s last trade was recorded at $31.95.

Unity Software Inc. (NYSE: U): Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal Weight and raised the price target =to $185 from $130. The consensus target is $170.68. The final trade on Monday came in at $139.75.
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Three top stocks are among the top aerospace and defense selections at Goldman Sachs. While perhaps not as exciting as momentum-juiced technology stocks, they have robust growth potential and will stand long after many meme stocks are in the Wall Street graveyard.

Monday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Apple, Coca-Cola, CommScope, Coupa Software, GoPro, HubSpot, Merck, NetApp, Pfizer, Shopify, Spirit Airlines and Warner Music. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Amazon.com, Chewy, PayPal and more.
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With the trading day nearly halfway over, the broad markets were somewhat mixed. The Nasdaq was roaring back up, nearly 1%, while the Dow Jones industrials were slightly negative and the S&P 500 was edging higher. Investors seem to be waiting, more than anything, for what the Federal Reserve has to say later in the day.

24/7 Wall St. is reviewing some big analyst calls seen on Wednesday. We have included the latest analyst call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts.

For those that might have missed it, 24/7 Wall St. had an earlier round of analyst calls on Wednesday that included Chewy, MGM Resorts, Microsoft, Salesforce, Virgin Galactic and more.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating and raised the price target to $3,150 from $2,950. Credit Suisse reiterated it at Outperform and raised the target to $3,400 from $3,350. BofA Securities reiterated a Buy rating and boosted the target to $3,150 from $2,755. JPMorgan reiterated it at Overweight and raised the target from $2,875 to $3,250. Other analysts responded to Tuesday’s earnings report too. The stock traded near $2,782 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $1,406.55 to $2,800.22. It has a consensus price target of $2,625.00.

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL): Canaccord Genuity reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $185 from $175. Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo each reiterated its Overweight rating, but the former raised its price target to $168 from $166, while the latter raised its price to $165 from $160. Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating and raised the price target from $160 to $165. Other analysts responded to Tuesday’s earnings report as well. The shares were changing hands at around $146 apiece on Wednesday, in a 52-week trading range of $93.71 to $150.00.

Five9 Inc. (NASDAQ: FIVN): JPMorgan’s downgrade to a Neutral rating from Overweight came with a $213 price target. Piper Sandler downgraded it to a Neutral rating from Overweight and cut the price target to $203 from $220, while Jefferies downgraded its Buy rating to Hold and has a $200 target. Shares traded near $198 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $107.98 to $201.75. The consensus price target is $206.63.

IMAX Corp. (NYSE: IMAX): JPMorgan reiterated a Neutral rating and cut the price target to $20 from $24. The stock was trading at around $16 a share on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $10.50 to $25.05.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Loop Capital downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy. The stock was changing hands near $108 a share on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $66.78 to $140.17.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX): Though Morgan Stanley reiterated an Equal Weight rating, it also raised the price target to $125 from $120. Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating and raised its target from $135 to $145. Barclays reiterated an Overweight rating and raised the target to $145 from $140. The stock traded near $123 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $74.76 to $126.32.

Stryker Corp. (NYSE: SYK): Northland Capital upgraded it to Outperform from Market Perform and raised the price target to $310 from $248. The stock traded near $270 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $185.20 to $275.08. Its consensus price target is $274.09.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V): Citigroup reiterated a Buy rating and raised the price target to $288 from $283, and Wells Fargo reiterated an Overweight rating and raised its target to $280 from $265. Raymond James reiterated an Outperform rating and hiked the target to $286 from $268. The stock was trading at around $249 a share on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $179.23 to $252.67. Analysts have a consensus price target of $268.97 for the stock.

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The electric vehicle revolution is still in its infancy, but by playing the power-generation angle, conservative investors can have a piece of the action and receive solid and dependable dividends while they wait for the growth in demand and use.

Also, see why ARK Invest funds continue to unload Chinese stocks.

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Friday’s futures were fairly positive, adding to a week of record highs. More will be seen when the markets actually open. Note that the markets are heading higher in the wake of Presidents Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill, which has led to industrials and financials making gains.

Wall Street is concerned about tapering of the quantitative easing program, but despite a clear building of inflationary pressures, the Federal Reserve is vowing to keep interest rates contained. That could be one reason for the continued moves higher in the equity markets, even after sell-offs. Another big plus is the continued massive inflows into money markets.

With major Wall Street firms still warning of the potential for an impending 5% to 10% correction across the board, it makes sense for investors to continue building some cash reserves into the market strength while repositioning portfolios for the coming quarter and the rest of 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations for Friday, June 25, 2021.

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APA Corp. (NASDAQ: APA): JPMorgan downgraded to a Neutral rating from Overweight with a $27 price target. Shares closed Thursday near $22 apiece, in a 52-week range of $7.45 to $24.30. The consensus price target is $27.74.

Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARCT): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $29 price target. The stock was last traded near $34, in a 52-week range of $24.87 to $129.71. The consensus price target is $81.08.

BlackBerry Ltd. (NYSE: BB): CIBC downgraded to a Sector Underperform rating from Neutral. Canaccord Genuity also downgraded to a Sell rating from Hold with a $10 price target. The stock closed near $13, in a 52-week range of $4.37 to $28.77. Analysts have a consensus price target of $7.75 for the stock.

CalAmp Corp. (NASDAQ: CAMP): Craig Hallum reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $16 from $15. The consensus price target is $14.88, and the stock closed Thursday at around $14 per share. The 52-week trading range is $7.01 to $14.51.

Cboe Global Markets Inc. (BATS: CBOE): Credit Suisse resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $94 price target. The stock closed near $121, in a 52-week range of $77.63 to $121.50.

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CME): Credit Suisse resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $183 price target. The shares last closed near $217, and the consensus price target is $213.94.

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: DRI): MKM Partners upgraded to a Buy rating from Neutral and raised its price target to $168 from $155. The stock most recently closed at $140 and has a consensus price target of $159.00.

Enphase Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: ENPH): Stephens initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $215 price target. Citigroup initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $220 price target. Shares last closed near $171 and have a consensus price target of $191.89.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR): Stephens started with an Overweight rating and a $102 price target. The stock was last trading near $84. The consensus target is $85.57. The 52-week trading range is $48.30 to $112.50.

Luminar Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: LAZR): Robert Baird upgraded to an Outperform rating from Neutral and raised the price target to $30 from $22. Shares last closed at $24, and the consensus price target is $28.25.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Goldman Sachs downgrade to a Neutral rating from Buy. The consensus price target is $125.62. The stock has a 52-week range of $62.46 to $140.17 and recently closed near $126 a share.

Nasdaq Inc. (NASDAQ: NDAQ): Credit Suisse resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and a $180 price target. Shares last closed at $178, and the consensus price target is $179.56.

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX): Credit Suisse upgraded to an Outperform rating from Neutral with a $586 price target. The stock was last traded near $518, in a 52-week range of $432.14 to $593.29. The consensus price target is $613.68.

Nike, Inc. (NYSE: NKE): Pivotal Research reiterated a Buy rating and raised the price target to $175 from $167. The stock closed near $133, in a 52-week range of $93.57 to $147.95. Analysts have a consensus price target of $161.87 for the stock.

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK): Goldman Sachs upgraded to a Buy rating from Neutral. The stock closed near $5, in a 52-week range of $3.21 to $9.79.

NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP): Raymond James upgraded to an Outperform rating from Market Perform with a $100 price target. The shares last closed near $81, and the consensus price target is $84.81.

Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD): JPMorgan downgraded to an Underweight rating from Neutral and cut the price target to $12 from $21. The stock most recently closed at $17.46 and has a 52-week range of $8.86 to $32.48.

Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ: RUN): Stephens initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and an $82 price target. Shares last closed near $53 and have a consensus price target of $76.59.

Sea Ltd. (NYSE: SE): New Street started with a Buy rating and a $325 price target. The stock was last trading near $289. The consensus target is $306.63. The 52-week trading range is $101.61 to $297.75.

SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SEDG): Stephens initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $336 price target. Citigroup also started with a Neutral and a $300 price target. Shares last closed at $267, and the consensus price target is $292.00.

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI): UBS upgraded to a Buy rating from Neutral and raised the price target to $375 from $335. The stock has a 52-week range of $139.95 to $354.60 and recently closed near $317 a share.

Vulcan Materials Co. (NYSE: VMC): Jefferies upgraded to a Buy rating from Hold and raised the price target to $207 from $180. The stock most recently closed at $176 and has a consensus price target of $192.83.

VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW): Raymond James resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and a $175 price target. Shares last closed at $155.82, and the consensus price target is $176.10.

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Friday’s futures inched higher after a fairly positive showing on Thursday. For most of the week, the major averages had traded sideways, but there could be a strong finish to the week. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released CPI data that rose by 5.0%, or the most since the financial crisis in 2008. While U.S. stocks did not necessarily react to this, the inflation outlook is a concern for many investors going forward.

Despite the resurfacing concerns across Wall Street for tapering of the quantitative easing program and a clear building of inflationary pressures, the Federal Reserve is vowing to keep interest rates contained. That could be one reason for the continued moves higher in the equity markets, even after sell-offs. Also note that money markets continue to see massive inflows, which is another big plus.

With major Wall Street firms still warning of the potential for impending 5% to 10% correction across the board, it makes sense for investors to continue building some cash reserves into the market strength while repositioning portfolios for the coming quarter and the rest of 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Friday, June 11, 2021.

Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB): Bernstein upgraded the stock to an Outperform rating from Market Perform and has a $500 price target. The stock last closed around $415, in a 52-week range of $223.25 to $468.55. The consensus price target is $376.43.

Cboe Global Markets Inc. (BATS: CBOE): Morgan Stanley initiated coverage with an Underweight rating and a $104 price target. Shares closed Thursday near $113, in a 52-week range of $77.63 to $116.39. The consensus price target is $111.15.

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CME): Morgan Stanley initiated coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $228 price target. The consensus price target is $212.24, and the stock closed at around $213. The 52-week range is $146.89 to $221.82.

Coursera Inc. (NYSE: COUR): RBC Capital Markets resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and a $50 price target. The stock closed Thursday near $44 and has a 52-week range of $32.59 to $62.53.

DocuSign Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU): RBC Capital Markets resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and a $280 price target. The stock closed at $243.08, in a 52-week range of $146.28 to $290.23. Analysts have a consensus price target of $270.83 for the stock.

Dropbox Inc. (NASDAQ: DBX): RBC Capital Markets resumed coverage with an Outperform rating, and the firm raised the price target to $35 from $28. The stock was last seen trading near $30, with a consensus analyst target of $31.67. The 52-week trading range is $17.66 to $29.86.

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Fastly Inc. (NYSE: FSLY): RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage with a $50 price target. The stock recently closed at $54 a share, within a 52-week range of $39.47 to $136.50. The consensus price target is $56.60.

Intellia Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: NTLA): H.C. Wainwright initiated coverage with a $111 price target. The stock closed near $83, in a 52-week range of $16.54 to $92.00. The consensus price target is $86.00.

International Paper Co. (NYSE: IP): Argus upgraded it to Buy from Hold and has a $75 price target. The stock was last seen around $63, in a 52-week range of $32.59 to $65.27. The consensus price target is $64.86.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Morgan Stanley downgraded it from Overweight to an Equal Weight rating with a $126 price target. The consensus price target is $125.62. The stock has a 52-week range of $57.40 to $140.17 and recently closed near $132 a share.

Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA): Zacks named this as its Bull of the Day stock. The analyst said that data center and artificial intelligence growth continues its path to overtake gaming and analysts are raising price targets. The stock most recently closed at $697.00 and has a consensus price target of $716.65.

Ping Identity Holding Corp. (NYSE: PING): Needham started coverage with a Hold rating. The stock recently closed near $25, in a 52-week range of $19.97 to $37.80. Analysts have a consensus price target of $31.88.

Quidel Corp. (NASDAQ: QDEL): Zacks selected this health care products maker as its Bear of the Day, pointing out that estimates were slashed another 30% since the first-quarter report, driving year-over-year projections negative into 2022. The shares last closed at $115.68, and its consensus price target is $170.50.

Seagate Technology Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: STX): Susquehanna upgraded the shares to Neutral from Negative. The consensus price target is $89.35, and the stock has a 52-week trading range of $43.53 to $106.22. It recently closed near $97 per share.

Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE: SIG): Wells Fargo raised its Underweight rating to Equal Weight, and the firm lifted the price target to $70 from $57. Shares last closed below $70, in a 52-week range of $9.71 to $74.80. The consensus price target is $66.20.

Tilray Inc. (NASDAQ: TLRY): The CIBC downgrade to Neutral from Sector Outperform came with a $25 price target. The stock closed near $20, in a 52-week range of $4.41 to $67.00. The consensus price target is $18.98.

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Investors can almost count on the taper tantrum selling when the Federal Reserve begins to slow the quantitative easing this year. Five top Dow Jones industrials will be good stocks to be in when it does, as they are all in sectors that look to benefit from the continued reopening of the economy.

With travel on the rise as the economy reopens, is now the time to buy the top airline stocks? Also, check out why Warren Buffett has invested in a Brazilian bank and how cryptocurrency could be regulated soon.

Thursday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alaska Airlines, Clover Health Investment, CME, Dillard’s, Discovery, Fastly, Marathon Oil, ServiceNow and UPS. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on American Airlines, Biogen, Dow and more.
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The futures were higher across the board on Monday, as traders and investors returned from the long holiday weekend. Although markets were closed on Friday, Wall Street was presented with outstanding nonfarm payroll numbers for March that came in at a stunning 916,000, versus the much lower consensus of 675,000. That was the fastest growth since August 2020. Gains were strongest in leisure and hospitality, as the reopening grew almost daily, while construction jumped by a very bullish 110,000 and the unemployment rate declined to 6.0%.

While top strategists on Wall Street continue pointing to “bubble” metrics, like the massive “meme” retail stock and option trading by the WallStreetBets and Robinhood crowd, some say that volume is starting to wane. Most investors now will be turning their attention to first-quarter earnings results, which start in earnest next week.

With major Wall Street firms still warning of the potential for impending 5% to 10% correction across the board, it makes sense for investors to continue building some cash reserves into the market strength, while repositioning portfolios for the start of the second quarter and the rest of 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.
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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Monday, April 5, 2021.

Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs, which also raised the price target to $166 from $95. The posted consensus target is $157.29, and the stock closed most recently at $168.90 a share.

AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AMC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at B. Riley Securities, which raised the price target on the movie theatre giant to $13 from $7. The consensus target is $3.44. The most recent close was at $9.36 a share. The stock was up almost 4% in Monday’s premarket.

Bandwidth Inc. (NASDAQ: BAND) was raised at Morgan Stanley from Underweight to Equal Weight with a $40 price target. The consensus target is much higher at $194.38. The stock closed Thursday at $126.74.

Caesars Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: CZR) was raised at Morgan Stanley from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $92 price target. The consensus target is $100. The stock ended last week at $88.94 a share.
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Essex Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: ESS) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets, which raised the price target to $310 from $275. The consensus target is $279.42, and the most recent close was at $276.49.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) was started at Wells Fargo with an Overweight rating and a $14 price target. The consensus target is $11.93, and the stock closed most recently at $12.17.

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) also was started with an Overweight rating at Wells Fargo, which has a $67 price target for the shares. The consensus target is $64.48, and the most recent close was at $57.80.

Harley-Davidson Inc. (NYSE: HOG) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm pointed out that people are no longer excited about this company’s motorcycles anymore. Shares last closed at $39.96 but have a consensus price target of $38.38.

Invitae Corp. (NASDAQ: NVTA) was raised from Perform to Outperform with a $48 price target at Oppenheimer. The much higher $64.60 consensus is also well above the most recent close at $39.19 per share.
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JetBlue Airway Corp. (NASDAQ: JBLU) was raised at Raymond James from Market Perform to Outperform with a $24 price target. The consensus target for the airline is $18.77, and the final trade for last week hit the tape at $20.27. The stock was almost 4% higher in the premarket.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this company is not just a “one-trick pony” of returns during the global lockdowns. Shares most recently closed at $107.98 and have a consensus price target of $123.28.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) was raised at Morgan Stanley from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $45 price target. The consensus target is $37.55. The shares closed at $39.70, up almost 5% on Thursday.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was resumed in coverage at Credit Suisse with an Outperform rating and a $265 price target. The consensus target for the legacy software giant is $272.71. The stock ended last week at $242.35 per share.
Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: PANW) was resumed in coverage at Credit Suisse with an Outperform rating and a $425 price target. The consensus target for the cybersecurity software leader is up at $447.35. The stock closed most recently at $328.05.

Roblox Corp. (NYSE: RBLX) was started with a Buy rating and a $78 price target at Truist Securities. The lower consensus target is $72.50. Morgan Stanley started the stock with an Overweight rating and an $80 target, while Goldman Sachs has a Buy rating and a $78 target. The shares ended last week trading at $67.34 and were trading over 5% higher in Monday’s premarket. The company recently priced a very successful initial public offering.

Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM) was resumed in coverage at Credit Suisse with an Outperform rating and a $260 price target. The consensus target is $275.31, and the stock closed most recently at $218.72.

Spotify Technology S.A. (NYSE: SPOT) was raised at Citigroup from Sell to Neutral with a $310 target. That compares with the $311.73 consensus target and Thursday’s final trade of $273.10 a share.

Texas Capital Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: TCBI) saw its target price raised to $82.50 from $73.50 at Hovde, which also raised the rating on the bank to Outperform from Market Perform. The consensus price target is $77.63. The share price was last seen at $70.20.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Wedbush, which raised the price target on the electric vehicle leader to $1,000 from $950. The consensus target is just $619, and the shares closed most recently at $661.75. The stock was almost 8% in the premarket.

Unity Software Inc. (NYSE: U) was resumed in coverage with an Outperform rating and a $170 price target at Credit Suisse. That compares with the lower consensus target of $139.58 and the latest close at $101.08 per share.
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Three Goldman Sachs top oil stock picks are all solid ways for investors to play the upswing in crude prices and an improving 2021 economy. They offer a degree of safety and income, as well as exposure to a sector with good upside potential.

Last Thursday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Carnival, Dow, Goldman Sachs, Micron Technology, Netflix, Oracle, Snap, Spotify and Twitter. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Airbnb, Amazon, Peloton, Uber and more.
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In some ways it feels like earnings season was hijacked by the constant talk about economic stimulus and the coming elections. The stock market is supposed to be a live bet on where things are heading in three or six months. However, the news of the present does matter, and that so-called efficient market theory where all current news is factored in has been proven wrong year after year.

Third-quarter earnings have dominated October’s corporate news flow. There were some very negative surprises that brought some pain, as well as some very positive surprises that drove shares much higher.

24/7 Wall St. has tracked multiple earnings reports this earnings season, and here we feature seven reports that stood out the most. Some of these did not have the craziest moves, but they should signal some key lessons for their sectors and peers. Other reports were followed by big moves.

Remember that investors love chasing trends. Companies that beat earnings expectations and raise guidance tend to attract more positive attention over time. With companies that miss expectations, trying to pick bottoms in a stock can sometimes feel like a game of catching daggers falling from tall buildings.
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Here are seven top earnings shocks that stood out the most so far in October.

Fastly Down the Drain

Fastly Inc. (NYSE: FSLY) may not seem like a very important stock. Yet, it was one of the top-performing high-flying cloud stocks, up 400% year to date before earnings. Fastly has become a warning siren for investors not to blindly trust that cloud and software stocks valued at 20, 30 and 50 times trailing sales and that are losing money will never fall back to earth.

The company’s new revenue target of $70 million to $71 million was barely under its prior guidance of $73.5 million to $75.5 million, but Fastly also withdrew all prior guidance, spoke about its top customer not meeting expectations with a significant revenue disappointment, and disclosed that a few of its customers had lower usage than it had estimated.

Fastly had risen “fastly” to above $120 a share prior to the October 14 confession. With a $13.7 billion market cap at that time, this valued it at close to 35 times its prior expected 2021 sales expectations, and Refinitiv had its consensus estimates showing a three-cent loss per share in 2020 and a three cent per-share earnings for all of 2021.

Fastly initially saw its $123.18 pre-earnings stock price fall 27% to $89.70. To prove that things can get worse when a stock is priced for perfection and disappoints, this stock fell to under $80 on Wednesday, and Friday’s drop of more than 4% to $75.60 was in the making for a seven-day consecutive losing streak. Its stock was down over 38% in just over a week.

The House of Morgan and Dimon

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is still the nation’s most prestigious bank. Even so, analysts and most other investors were expecting larger loss provisions. The big trends were that some of JPMorgan’s numbers were stronger than they had been a year earlier, which seems hard to fathom this early in the recovery and with the stimulus package not having come yet (75 days late and counting).

CEO Jamie Dimon reported $2.92 EPS on revenue of $29.94 billion, versus $2.68 EPS on managed revenue of $30.01 billion in the same quarter a year earlier. Refinitiv’s consensus estimates were just $2.23 EPS on revenue of $28.29 billion. The bank’s average loan balance of $991 billion was also up 1% from a year earlier, and the $1.2 billion in net charge-offs was down from $1.6 billion a quarter earlier and down from $1.4 billion in the third quarter of 2019.

JPMorgan shares initially pulled the “let’s trade lower on good news” reaction, but after drifting to just under $100, the stock was back up above $103.00 as stimulus talks looked positive.

Logitech Loves the Stay Away From the Office

Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) reported its most recent quarterly results on Monday, and the stock surged from $80 to $95 before backing off the rest of the week. The computer peripherals maker reported $1.87 EPS and $1.26 billion in revenue. This report blew away the consensus estimates of $0.57 in EPS and revenue of $834.55 million, and it compared to $0.50 EPS and $719.69 million in revenue for the same period in 2019.

While the stay-at-home trend may fade after a coronavirus cure and vaccine, the trend is not expected to dwindle any time soon, as the number of cases keeps rising in the United States and elsewhere. This also marked Logitech’s first time that quarterly sales exceeded the billion-dollar mark. Logitech’s CEO also talked up 2021 guidance.

Some investors may feel disappointed that the stock was down closer to $87 on Friday afternoon, but this is now up nearly 200% from the panic-selling lows of March.
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Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) has been a down and out stock for longer than anyone would care to remember. Despite a rough economy, parents are indulging their kids like there is no tomorrow while everyone is having to play alone at home. The toymaker knocked the ball out of the park with $0.95 EPS on $1.63 billion in revenue. Consensus estimates had been only $0.38 EPS and $1.46 billion in revenue, and the year-ago results were $0.26 EPS and revenue of $1.48 billion.

What matters here now is that this should set up Mattel for a very strong Christmas spending season. Sales of dolls rose 22% and the category for action figures, building sets and games rose by 14%. This was offset by a 6% drop in the infant, toddler and preschool sales, while vehicles gained 6%.

Mattel shares were up almost 14% at $14.72 late on Friday, and the stock’s 52-week high of $14.83 was almost hit. While a 52-week high may be impressive, this traded above $30 in 2016, and it had peaked above $45 back in 2013.

Netflix Subscriber Woes

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) has been a very strong winner of the stay-at-home economy and with movie theaters shut down for months on end. When it gave very lackluster subscriber expectations ahead, analysts dismissed the forecasts as conservative on one end and sandbagging on the other. Analysts raised targets over the summer, but they then doubled down and raised their targets even more in September and October.

It turns out that Netflix was just being honest. We had even pointed out a classical triple-top stock chart pattern, and now Netflix is down about 15% from its peak. Some targets were still raised after earnings, but much more mixed, and now analysts are calling for Netflix to announce another round of price hikes to juice up the earnings.

Netflix had fallen to under $483.00 on Friday. Maybe it should have considered that stock split after all.

Snap’s “Camera Company” Journey

Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) was the first of the big social media players to report. So far, Snapchat has little to no regulatory issues nor any election controversies hanging over its head. Snap reported a mere $0.01 EPS and $678.67 million in revenue on Tuesday, but Refinitiv had called for a net loss of $0.05 per share and $549.99 million in revenue. The same period of last year had a net loss of $0.04 per share and $446.2 million in revenue.

The company’s daily active users (DAUs) surged during 2020 in the pandemic, rising to 249 million from 211 million in the third quarter last year. DAUs increased sequentially and year over year on both iOS and Android platforms. The company also communicated that 40% of the U.S. Gen Z population watched sports Discover content on Snapchat last month, and that its average revenue per user increased 28% year over year to $2.73.

Snap closed Tuesday at $28.41 a share ahead of the report, but it surged more than 28% to $36.50 the first day after the earnings on more than 250 million shares in a single day. Even the next day, the stock was up another 6% at $38.65 shortly before the closing bell. Suddenly, this was up 36% in two trading days and then it was up another 8% at $42.25 mid-Friday. Overall, Snap added close to $20 billion in market capitalization this week.
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Travelers Flying High

Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE: TRV) is the one Dow Jones industrial average stock that almost everyone sort of forgets about. The insurance and financial services giant has just lagged all year long, and its valuations were stubbornly low. That sets a springboard for any unexpected good news.

Travelers showed that its third-quarter net income hit $827, its financial ratios improved, it had favorable reserve developments, its catastrophic losses were not high as some might have expected, and it said that net written premiums rose 3% sequentially to $7.771 billion with strong renewal rate changes in all three segments.

Travelers traded at $111.84 per share on Monday, but by Thursday afternoon it was up at $126.25, before less than a 1% pullback on Friday. It still has a market cap of less than $32 billion. With a 52-week trading range of $76.99 to $141.87, it may be more than just analysts who bet that the stock will head higher with a valuation that is barely 13 times next year’s expected earnings.
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When Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) reported its most recent quarterly results after the markets closed on Monday, the computer peripherals maker posted $1.87 in earnings per share (EPS) and $1.26 billion in revenue. The consensus estimates had called for $0.57 in EPS and revenue of $834.55 million. The fiscal second quarter of last year reportedly had EPS of $0.50 on $719.69 million in revenue.

During the latest quarter, net sales increased 75% in U.S. dollars and 73% in constant currency on a year over year basis. This was also the first time ever that Logitech’s quarterly sales exceeded the billion-dollar mark.

Also, non-GAAP operating income increased 295% year over year to $322 million, a massive gain from $68 million last year.

On the books, Logitech’s cash and cash equivalents totaled $917.22 million at the end of the quarter, up from $715.57 million at the end of the previous fiscal year.

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Management noted that growth and profitability accelerated again this quarter, and as a result it is raising the annual outlook. The growth trends that drive the business have accelerated as society adjusts to its new reality. Overall, the firm believes that its products are essential to helping customers work, play and create wherever they are. President and CEO Bracken Darrell concluded that Logitech is well positioned for long-term growth.

Looking ahead to the 2021 fiscal full year, the company now expects to see sales growth in the range of 35% to 40% in constant currency and $700 million to $725 million in non-GAAP operating income. The previous outlook called for 10% to 13% in sales growth and $410 million to $425 million in non-GAAP operating income. Analysts are calling for $2.32 in EPS and $3.35 billion in revenue for the fiscal full year.

Logitech stock traded up 16% to $92.92 Tuesday morning, in a 52-week range of $31.37 to $93.89. The consensus price target is $74.94.

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Beginning in late September, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) began removing third-party products like headphones, earphones and speakers from its online store as the company prepares an announcement of new earphone and speaker products.

According to a report late Monday at Bloomberg, employees at Apple’s brick-and-mortar stores have been told to begin removing headphones and speakers from Bose, along with speakers from Sonos Inc. (NASDAQ: SONOS) and Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI).

Over the next few months, Apple is expected to release new over-the-ear headphones under the “AirPods Studio” brand name. The company is also expected to launch a smaller and cheaper version of its HomePod smart speaker.

Apple has taken this step before when it finally gets around to introducing something that competes with a third-party product it has been selling. Fitbit Inc.’s (NYSE: FIT) health tracker is, perhaps, the best example. Apple withdrew Fitbit products from its stores beginning in late 2014, just ahead of its April launch of the first Apple Watch. By the first quarter of 2017, Apple Watch had surpassed Fitbit in the number of units shipped.

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Apple’s current HomePod lists for $299. Logitech’s Ultimate Ears Blast smart speaker carries a list price of $179.99 while the Sonos Play: 1 has a price tag of $189.99. Bose offers a SoundLink Mini II smart speaker for $179.95. All three companies offer more expensive speakers, but Apple does not yet offer a competitor at the low end of the price range.

At a time when big tech companies are under a microscope because of their market power, it seems like tossing down the gauntlet by refusing to carry competing products may be a bad idea. Apple’s dispute with Epic Games over Apple’s royalty demands could result in a tectonic shift in power away from ecosystems like Apple’s toward smaller competitors.

Apple has to defend its ecosystem everywhere it can. Booting competing hardware products from the stores is all about lifting Apple’s own revenues and profits. Challenges to the company’s playbook are sure to multiply if Apple gives an inch.

Apple’s stock traded down about 1.9% Tuesday morning, at $114.30 in a 52-week range of $53.15 to $137.98. The consensus price target on the stock is $119.37.

Sonos traded down about 5.2% to $14.85, in a 52-week range of $6.58 to $17.83 and with a price target of $16.36.

Logitech stock dropped 5.5% to $76.32. The 52-range is $31.37 to $80.87, and the stock’s price target is $76.28.

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Stocks were mixed on Tuesday, and the markets were indicated to open softer on Wednesday. The indexes have all recovered almost everything from their panic-selling lows in March, and many investors are now wondering about valuations and how much higher stocks can go during the recession. This is also the week that the earnings floodgates open wide, and that means many analysts will be making tweaks ahead of reports and there will be many upgrades and downgrades afterward. With an election coming up and with what is still a very deep recession, investors need to be considering how they want their assets positioned for the second half of 2020 and as 2021 comes into focus.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week in an effort to find new ideas for long-term investors and short-term traders alike. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy, and others cover stocks to sell or avoid.

Remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision. Consensus analyst target prices are from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst calls we have seen on Wednesday, July 22, 2020.

AGCO Corp. (NYSE: AGCO) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at BofA Securities. Shares closed up 1% at $61.97 ahead of the call and were indicated up almost 1% more at $62.50 on Wednesday. Its consensus target price was $59.43.
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Air Transport Services Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ATSG) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $30 from $27 (versus a $24.19 prior close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) was reiterated as Buy and its target was raised to $70 from $62 at Mizuho.

Autolus Therapeutics PLC (NASDAQ: AUTL) was started with a Buy rating and a $38 price target (versus a $14.95 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Boot Barn Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BOOT) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this stock was a healthy growing company coming into the pandemic but this has turned it around. Shares last closed at $19.62 and have a consensus price target of $23.91.

Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) was up 2.3% at $47.20 on Tuesday after earnings and shares were indicated up almost 1% at $47.60 on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley raised it to Overweight from Equal Weight and raised its price target to $54 from $52.

Colgate-Palmolive Co. (NYSE: CL) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) was started with an Underperform rating and was effectively given a $0.00 price target at Wedbush Securities. While the analyst call signaled a relatively high level of value embedded in the company’s underlying enterprise value (and ample room for a substantial capital raise), the dilution to existing holders of the public shares in any recapitalization is likely to be substantial and may cut the value to essentially zero for the common shares.

FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) was down about 17% at $34.25 after being involved in a bribery investigation, and its shares were last seen down another 8% at $31.50 on Wednesday morning. Guggenheim downgraded it to Neutral from Buy. Evercore ISI downgraded it to In-Line from Outperform with a $41 target price.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $120 price target (versus a $99.41 close) at Atlantic Equities.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) was reiterated as Buy and its target was raised to $385 from $290 at Mizuho.
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Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was indicated up 3.9% at $73.17 on Wednesday after strong results and after its appearance on CNBC’s Mad Money. Citigroup reiterated its Buy rating and raised its target price to $81 from $73.

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral and its price target was slashed to $3 from $6 (versus a $6.80 close) at UBS.

NGL Energy Partners L.P. (NYSE: NGL) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight with a $4 price target at Wells Fargo. It previously closed up almost 14% at $4.90, with a $4.58 consensus target price.

ONEOK Inc. (NYSE: OKE) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $33 target price (versus a $29.98 close, after a 6% gain) at Wells Fargo.

Owens & Minor Inc. (NYSE: OMI) was up 81% at $14.40 after blowing away earnings expectations on Tuesday. It was indicated down over 4% at $13.75 early on Wednesday. Barclays maintained its Underweight rating but raised its target to $10 from $4.

PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $210 from $199 at Barclays. The stock closed down 1.8% at $175.58, with a $177.60 consensus target price.

Phillips 66 Partners (NYSE: PSXP) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $34 target price (versus a $31.27 close, after a 6% gain) at Wells Fargo.

Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) was down 2.1% at $24.74 ahead of earnings and was last seen trading down almost 7% at $23.08 after earnings. Guggenheim downgraded it to Neutral from Buy, although the firm raised its target to $22 from $18, despite lower monetization outside of the United States.

Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $145 from $115 at Barclays. Shares closed down 1% at $126.99, with a $96.47 consensus target price.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) was reiterated as Underweight but its price target was raised to $5.00 from $2.50 at Barclays. The shares were down over 5% at $9.79 on Tuesday and were indicated up about 2% at $10.05 on Wednesday.

Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ: RUN) was reiterated as Overweight and its target price was raised to $50 from $23 at Barclays. The stock closed up 1.5% at $38.98 ahead of the call, with a $28.56 consensus target price.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (NYSE: TSM) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this company has an enormous amount of growth ahead of it. Shares most recently closed at $67.81 and have a consensus price target of $63.80.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) was trading up over 1% at $137.20 after beating earnings and revenue expectations. UBS reiterated its Neutral rating and raised its target price to $131 from $130, and Mizuho reiterated its Neutral rating and raised its target to $130 from $127. Barclays maintained its Underweight rating and raised its target to $125 from $120.

VBI Vaccines Inc. (NASDAQ: VBIV) was reiterated as Outperform and its target price was raised to $8 from $3 (versus a $5.39 close) at Raymond James. It had an $8.25 consensus target price, and its 52-week range was $0.47 to $6.93.

Waitr Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: WTRH) was started as Buy with an $8 price target (versus a $4.42 close) at B. Riley FBR.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Atlantic Equities. Wells Fargo closed up over 6% at $26.20 ahead of the call and was indicated down less than 0.5% at $26.10 on Wednesday. Its consensus target price was $29.80.

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Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Albertsons, Alphabet, Carnival, Coeur Mining, Devon Energy, Halliburton, Skyworks Solutions, Tesla, Walt Disney, Zendesk and more.
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As the economy as whole was shut down for much of the spring, innovation was on hold and most people were waiting out the pandemic stuck at home. The stay-at-home economy picked at this time, and a few industries definitely reaped the reward. One such industry was video games.

There is nothing better to do when stuck at home than to knock out a few hours of heists in “Grand Theft Auto V,” connect with some friends for a “Battle Royale” in Fortnite, or even explore Hyrule in “Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.” These are all excellent ways to spend the excess of downtime that the world is experiencing. With that said, the companies behind these games, products and consoles definitely saw a boost in sales, and it may not even be over yet.

The next generation of consoles is on the way this fall, just in time for the holidays. Gamers, from novice to seasoned veterans, will need new headsets, games, keyboards and more. The brand new consoles are obviously the key selling point, but with these comes the rest of the gear.

To draw a parallel, the video game consoles go through a supercycle similar to that of Apple’s iPhone. In this case, a new generation of video game consoles comes out every five-to-eight years, bringing better graphics, new games and everything else that companies want to build around these platforms.

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24/7 Wall St. has put together a list of companies that could stand to benefit from this upcoming console supercycle.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) are leading the way with the Xbox Series X and PlayStation5, respectively. Nintendo may be left in the dust, but there are rumors that it may be debuting a new version of the Switch later this year. In fact, one analyst downgraded Nintendo for this reason. However, it is worth pointing out that as big as Microsoft is, video game consoles are not where it makes its money, so don’t expect an outsized impact here.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) makes this list as it is the company manufacturing the chips that power these consoles for the next generation of gaming. This stock has seen incredible growth over the past few years, and with this continued momentum, the sky is the limit. AMD stock closed Thursday at $57.26, in a 52-week range of $27.43 to $59.27. Analysts have a consensus price target of $54.40.

Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) are three of the biggest video game producers in the world. With a new line of consoles, gamers will need new games, and these companies will be selling the goods.

Activision Blizzard stock closed Thursday at $80.64, in a 52-week range of $44.81 to $80.74. The consensus price target is $80.59.

Take-Two stock closed at $150.76. It has a 52-week range of $100.00 to $151.30 and a consensus price target of $149.61.

Electronic Arts stock was last seen trading at $138.80. The 52-week range is $85.69 to $139.07, and analysts have a consensus target of $132.84.

Turtle Beach Corp. (NASDAQ: HEAR) and Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) may not be household names but they are heavily involved with the gaming community. Turtle Beach specializes in headsets for gaming, but it also deals in keyboards, mice and other accessories. Logitech specializes in the keyboards, mice and accessories, but it also makes headsets too. These companies are two sides of the same coin.

Turtle Beach stock closed Thursday at $16.97, in a 52-week range of $4.05 to $17.16. The consensus price target is $19.20.

Logitech stock closed at $67.48, with a consensus price target of $71.50. The 52-week trading range is $31.37 to $67.55.

Lastly, the stores selling all these consoles and goods could see a boost as well. Not to mention, analysts are expecting to see a surge in TV demand in the second half of 2020 and into 2021 for 60-inch screens and up. Best Buy Co. (NYSE: BBY) is the go-to store for anything consumer electronics related. The chain has reported huge sales in the past when the console wars first began. GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) could be another beneficiary from console and gear sales as well, if anything this could prop up this struggling specialty retailer.

Best Buy stock closed at $84.95, within a 52-week range of $48.11 to $91.99. The consensus price target is $87.29.

GameStop stock closed at $4.21. The 52-week range is $2.57 to $6.92. The consensus analyst target is $4.12.

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If there has been one story within the explosive growth of technology in the past two decades that could stand some improvement, glass probably takes the cake. Still, all these devices come with screens, and many investors have had high hopes for Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW). While Corning has been diversified across many industries for decades, Citigroup sees the company as a winner, based on the coming demand for iPhones, televisions and other screens.

Citi’s Asiya Merchant sees a wave of new purchases over the coming 12 months that will be targeted around smartphones, personal computers and tablets. A survey of 3,000 consumers shows that almost 30% of respondents indicated that they plan on buying a new smartphone over the next year, with almost 25% of iPhone users planning to buy the upcoming 5G iPhone.

The report might sound great for the likes of Corning, but perhaps the real news here is more about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) with longer-term favorable trends, even though they are not the target of the Citi report. Apple will be a significant winner if 25% of U.S. consumers really do follow through and buy the new iPhone, and Best Buy gets to sell every one of the other items in the report. Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) and iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) also get honorable mentions here.

The Citi report noted that brand loyalty is extreme with Apple and that 5G is an important consideration for the next smartphone purchase. Merchant even noted that iPhone users are willing to pay more for the next smartphone purchase than any other brand.

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As for PC demand, the driving force is likely to come from consumer demand, while weakness is expected in the commercial side of the business. This might not translate to the premium-priced Mac sales, particularly if they are meant to help interface with work.

Citi’s report also points to strong demand in TV screens. That survey of 3,000 consumers indicated that TV demand is improving despite the recession. Some of that has to be the stay-at-home trend, but the survey noted that roughly 20% of the respondents were planning to buy a TV with a screen of at least 60 inches.

The win for Logitech comes from the survey’s outlook for video game accessories. That may be due to new consoles coming out, but some caution has been raised by other firms that Logitech’s boom from workers staying at home and needing PC and other gear might be factored into the stock after such a strong run. Still, Citi reiterated its Buy rating on Logitech and raised the target to $73 from $60.

As for iRobot, the Neutral rating from Citi is less exciting, even if Merchant’s target price went up to $85 from $60. If anyone has been staying at home and wanting to be isolated, having a robotic vacuum cleaning device should have proven its own worth by now.

After adding the pieces together, Merchant reiterated her Buy rating on Corning and raised her price target to $32 from $24, and she noted a “positive catalyst watch” as well.

Corning was down three cents at $25.88 in midday trading. Its 52-week trading range is $17.44 to $34.25, and its consensus price target was still lower at $23.71.

Apple was up 0.4% at $366.20, and its 52-week range is $192.58 to $372.38. Apple’s consensus target price from Refinitiv is lower at $345.35, but on June 16 Citi had raised its target price to $400 from $310.

Logitech was down 0.5% at $64.90, within  a 52-week range of $31.37 to $65.37.

For all the beneficiaries of these heading into Best Buy, as Apple closes more stores,  it also could be sending would-be buyers to Best Buy. Its stock was up the most of the lot with a 0.8% gain to $87.96. Best Buy’s 52-week range is $48.11 to $91.99, and its consensus analyst target was $86.53.

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Stocks traded lower early Wednesday on what some technicians will say is a much needed breather after such strong gains. The stock market that originally turned into fastest bear market and recession in our lifetimes has somehow managed to recover most of its losses. The Nasdaq still is managing to hang above 10,000, as the tech leaders are where all of the interest has been in this new economy. Investors should be considering how they want their assets positioned ahead of the election and for the rest of 2020.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find new ideas for long-term investors and short-term traders alike. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy, and some cover stocks to sell or avoid.

What has happened in this past drive of the gains is that many analyst calls have included upgrades and price target hikes, but often stocks are managing to move even beyond what the ratings and expectations might have indicated.

Remember, no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision. Consensus analyst target prices are from Refinitiv.

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These are the top analyst calls we have seen on Wednesday, June 24, 2020.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $3,050 from $2,750 (versus a $2,764.41 prior close) at Wedbush Securities.

Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE: ACB) announced a restructuring that included layoffs and plant closures on Tuesday. Stifel raised its rating to Hold from Sell on Wednesday, noting that it believes the company has weathered the storm and that the actions should allow it to get through its debt and liquidity ahead. Shares closed down 1% at $13.58 on Tuesday and were up almost 2% at $13.85 Wednesday morning.

Cheesecake Factory Inc. (NASDAQ: CAKE) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $47 from $45 at Morgan Stanley.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform and its price target was set at $50 at Cowen.

Kilroy Realty Corp. (NYSE: KRC) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA Securities.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform with a $65 target price (versus a $62.74 close) at Wedbush, with the firm noting that the work/stay-at-home accessories company has reached a full valuation.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $58 price target at D.A. Davidson.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $119 from $92 at Morgan Stanley.

Nintendo is not traded on a primary U.S. exchange but still has many U.S. shareholders. Wedbush downgraded its rating to Neutral from Outperform due to valuation, as well as a relatively unclear catalyst path that would drive upside ahead.

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Nio Ltd. (NYSE: NIO) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy but its price target was raised to $7.00 from $6.40 at Goldman Sachs. Shares closed down 2.7% at $7.23 on Tuesday and were indicated down almost 4% at $6.96 Wednesday morning. Its consensus price target was only $5.09 ahead of this call.

Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $14 from $6 (versus a $6.43 close) at H.C. Wainwright. It previously had a $6.33 consensus target price, and its shares were indicated up about 10% at $7.10 on Wednesday. Plug Power recently was featured as one of six alternative energy stocks that could have significant upside ahead.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) was maintained as Outperform with a $63 price target (versus a $54.36 close) at Wedbush. Barclays downgraded it to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut its target to $50 from $55.

SailPoint Technologies Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SAIL) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $30 from $25 (versus a $25.91 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE:  NOW) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $450 from $385 (versus a $400.94 close) at SunTrust.

Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) was reiterated as Neutral but its price target was raised to $16 from $12.25 (versus a $23.67 close) at Wedbush.

Texas Roadhouse Inc. (NASDAQ: TXRH) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.

Tractor Supply Co. (NASDAQ: TSCO) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that after big second-quarter guidance, this stock won’t stop plowing higher. Shares most recently closed at $129.26, with a consensus price target of $122.39.

TripAdvisor Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) was reiterated as Neutral with a $20 target price (versus a $20.11 close) at Wedbush, and despite the run-up after an update, its view is the steep declines in its business outweigh some sequential improvements.

VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this stock just cannot rally, which is a red flag in a V-shaped recovery. Shares last closed at $62.69 and have a consensus price target of $62.00.

VSE Corp. (NASDAQ: VSEC) was started with a Buy rating and a $38 price target (versus a $27.39 close) at SunTrust. The firm called it an underfollowed emerging aftermarket pure play.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $135 from $125 at Morgan Stanley. Disney shares closed up 0.6% at $116.59 on Tuesday and had a $121.71 consensus price target.

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Goldman Sachs has raised its price targets handily on four top stocks it has Buy ratings on.

Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included AbbVie, Ambarella, Apple, DocuSign, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Micron Technology, Nike, PG&E, ViacomCBS, YETI, Yext and more.

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Stocks were indicated to open weak on Monday after the “sell in May” theme coincided with Friday’s start to a new month. There are many companies reporting earnings, and investors are trying to decide whether stocks rebounded too much from the March lows or if the gradual reopening of the economy and the trillions of dollars of stimulus are set to win the day. This is a time when investors need to be looking at new ideas to decide how to be best positioned for the summer and the rest of 2020.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find some of those new ideas for long-term investors and short-term traders alike. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy, and others cover stocks to sell or avoid. Consensus analyst target prices are from Refinitiv.

Analysts are still making many upgrades, downgrades, reiterations and initiations ahead of and after key earnings reports. While some are still cutting price targets and earnings estimates for the coming quarters and the year, many are maintaining their prior official ratings. There are even many traditional upgrades and reiterations taking place as though things were close to normal. Remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.

These are the top analyst calls seen on Monday, May 4, 2020.

AON PLC (NYSE: AON) was maintained as Buy but its price target was cut to $215 from $260 at MKM Partners.

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Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSH) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital Markets.

CoreLogic Inc. (NYSE: CLGX) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $48 price target (versus a $40.59 prior close) at Compass Point.

CyrusOne Inc. (NASDAQ: CONE) was raised to Buy from Hold with an $81 price target (versus a $69.70 close) at Jefferies.

Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) was downgraded to Underperform from Buy at BofA Securities.

Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $57 from $48 (versus a $46.70 close) at Wedbush Securities, which noted that it is undervalued in the new at-home economy.

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYO) was downgraded to Underperform from Buy at BofA Securities.

Nordic American Tankers Ltd. (NYSE: NAT) was downgraded to Underperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI.

PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) was reiterated as Overweight but the price target was raised to $140 from $115 (versus a $120.61 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets.

PG&E Corp. (NYSE: PCG) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

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Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $95 price target (versus a $66.36 close) at Mizuho.

Planet Fitness Inc. (NYSE: PLNT) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that staying fit at home gains momentum as the gym suffers. Shares last closed at $57.62 and have a consensus price target of $68.46.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. (NYSE: PNC) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at UBS.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) was started with an Underweight rating and a $70 price target (versus a $75.64 close) at Wells Fargo.

Range Resources Corp. (NYSE: RRC) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at MKM Partners.

Realty Income Corp. (NYSE: O) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) was maintained as Hold but its price target was cut to $82 from $102 at Deutsche Bank.

Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) was reiterated as Overweight but the price target was raised to $700 from $500 (versus a $613.64 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SBGI) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight and its price target was cut to $11 from $16 at Wells Fargo.

Southern Co. (NYSE: SO) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was maintained as Equal Weight and the price target was raised to $680 from $440 (versus a $701.32 close, after a 10.3% drop) at Morgan Stanley.

Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) was raised to Buy from Neutral with an $85 price target (versus a $58.76 close) at Mizuho.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at MoffettNathanson, which noted that the downturn will be longer than most anticipate and it has lowered estimates even out to 2021 and 2022.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) was maintained as Hold but its price target was cut to $104 from $132 at Deutsche Bank.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that the company is seeing a benefit as consumers grow more comfortable with online shopping. Shares most recently closed at $122.50, with a consensus price target of $87.67.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at UBS.

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The huge roller-coaster ride of the markets has helped create a surge in volumes, and new investors have come into the markets while volatility continues to stay high. The Goldman Sachs team feels this bodes well for the capital markets stocks, those of the companies most directly involved in the mechanics of the markets.

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On top of the spreading coronavirus impact on the markets and the economy, now the U.S. has to grapple with a Russia/Saudi price war in oil that has created a lock limit down of 5% in the equity futures market, and oil is having the worst day since around the first Gulf War. Long-term Treasury yields are creating a situation in which the Federal Reserve has few tools to help the markets beyond liquidity assurances. Many investors have been slow to act in how to position their assets ahead of the current market carnage.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week in an effort to find new ideas for traders and long-term investors alike. Some of the daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while some calls cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

One interesting point is that analysts have so far avoided the mudslide of mass downgrades for all sectors, even if consensus target prices have been coming down marginally. That said, the energy sector is now facing a mudslide of abandonment that will spill over into areas far beyond just oil and gas.

We have provided these analyst calls in a quick-hit summary for easy reading, and additional comments and trading data have been added on many of the calls. The consensus analyst price targets and other valuation metrics are from the Refinitiv sell-side research service.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations from Monday, March 9, 2020.

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SunTrust Robinson Humphrey downgraded more than 25 in its oil exploration and production universe. The firm now sees an oil price collapse as a price war kicked off this weekend as Saudi Arabia responded to Russia after they refused to endorse new production cuts for the OPEC+ group and after it refused to extend the existing oil cuts that end in three weeks, along with continued oil demand destruction due to COVID-19. The firm spoke with oil executives over the weekend and now suggests the E&P players are likely in for a bleak period if the price war and COVID-19 impact last more than a quarter. The list of downgrades is too large to write out, but these are the tickers: APA, CPE, CDEV, CHK, XEC, CLR, DVN, FANG, ESTE, ERF, EOG, XOG, HPR, MGY, MRO, MTDR, NOG, OXY, OVV, PE, PXD, RTLR, REI, ROSE, VNOM, WLL, WPX. Many of those stocks were down 20% to 30% in early trading indications.

Goldman Sachs even warned that, under the worst cases, oil could drop down close to $20.00 per barrel. Needless to say, that would be a lose-lose situation for even the strongest of oil giants. A report from DNB Bank in Norway has warned that this will turn into an outright price war.

Credit Suisse has downgraded its views to much less aggressive on the S&P 500 for 2020, but while it sees the news around COVID-19 getting worse, it also sees it waning by mid-2020. The coronavirus likely to affect profits by −8% and should rebound in the second half, with the firm cutting its more aggressive 3,600 target on the S&P 500 down to 3,300 by year-end as it lowered its 2020 EPS estimate to $165 from $175.

American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) was raised to Outperform from Neutral with a $124 target price at Robert W. Baird. Amex closed down 2.4% at $108.24 and was indicated down about 5.6% at $102.25 on Monday morning, with a $139.13 prior consensus target price.

ADT Inc. (NYSE: ADT) was maintained as Outperform but its target price was trimmed to $10 from $11 (versus a $5.92 prior close) at Imperial Capital. Shares closed down 5.6% at $5.92 on Friday, down from a 52-week high of $9.70 and compared to an $8.61 consensus target price.

Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A./N.V. (NYSE: BUD) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that the beer giant is battling changing consumer tastes and slower growth. Shares last closed at $53.80 and have a consensus price target of $80.48.

Cars.com Inc. (NYSE: CARS) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $10 target price (versus a $7.10 close) at BTIG Research.

Cytosorbents Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSO) was reiterated as Buy and its target price was raised to $17 from $15 (versus a $6.01 close, after a 7.7% gain) at Dawson James. The firm noted it can raise revenues ahead with new indications and that it has only scratched the surface.

DHT Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DHT) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $6.50 target price (versus a $5.15 close) at Stifel.

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Fortive Corp. (NYSE: FTV) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform at Cowen.

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) was maintained as Outperform with an $86 target price at RBC Capital Markets, but the firm removed Gilead as a Top Pick stock from its list. After closing up 5.4% at $80.23 on Friday, the stock was down 4.5% at $76.60 on Monday morning, despite being one of the 10 stocks that has thrived despite the stock market carnage.

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HLT) was maintained as Outperform but its target price was lowered to $110 from $122 at Raymond James. Wells Fargo maintained its Equal Weight but cut its target to $92 from $114.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Robert W. Baird. After a 5.6% drop to $11.12 on Friday, it was indicated down 8% at $10.20 on Monday.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Outperform from Neutral with a $48 target price (versus a $39.79 close) at Wedbush Securities, with the firm noting that its growth trajectory remains stable despite the market disruptions.

Nu Skin Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: NUS) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.

PACCAR Inc. (NASDAQ: PCAR) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform at Cowen.

Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ: PLXS) was raised to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.

Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) was downgraded to Market Perform from Strong Buy at Raymond James.

Revolution Medicines Inc. (NASDAQ: RVMD) was started with a Buy rating and a $50 target price at Guggenheim.

Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE: STNG) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $30 target price (versus a $16.40 close) at Stifel.

Stamps.com Inc. (NASDAQ: STMP) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this digital postage provider has been one of the few coronavirus-immune stocks. Shares most recently closed at $123.39, with a consensus price target of $135.00.

Sterling Bancorp (NYSE: STL) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at Piper Sandler.

Tellurian Inc. (NASDAQ: TELL) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform and its target price was slashed to $2.00 from $5.00 (versus a $1.21 close) at Robert W. Baird.

Total S.A. (NYSE: TOT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein.

Triumph Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: TBK) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at B. Riley FBR.

Vivint Smart Home Inc. (NYSE: VVNT), which was just featured as one of 10 stocks that have thrived even in the market carnage, was maintained as I-Line with a target price hike to $23 from $12.50 at Imperial Capital. Goldman Sachs started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $25 target price. Shares closed up over 13% at $26.54 on Friday.

Despite the market carnage, 10 stocks thrived last week, as well as over the course of the past month and in 2020.

Friday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Advanced Micro Devices, Apple, Booking, Cisco Systems, Costco Wholesale, Kroger, Lyft, Macy’s, Marvell Technology, Starbucks and many more.

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Stocks have tried unsuccessfully to bounce in the past two days, and Thursday was indicated down about 1.3% in futures as a community-acquired coronavirus case was reported in California. Some investors and analysts are also citing election jitters with many business sectors being targeted in the election. Despite this being an election year and despite the global economy being affected by the coronavirus outbreak, many investors have yet to make any major changes to their holdings after the incredible gains from 2019.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to try to find new ideas for traders and long-term investors alike. Some of the daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while others cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

We have provided these analyst calls in a quick-hit summary for easy reading, and additional comments and trading data have been added on many of the calls. The consensus analyst price targets and other valuation metrics are from the Refinitiv sell-side research service.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations from Thursday, February 27, 2020.

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) was started with an Equal Weight rating and a $97 target price (versus an $88.41 prior close) at Barclays. AbbVie had a consensus target price of $101.08.

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Adamis Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: ADMP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Dawson James, with the firm noting that a recent filing came with too much dilution.

Applied Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: APLT) was started with an Overweight rating and a $64 target price (versus a $41.70 close) at Barclays. Its consensus target price was $50.67.

Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) was started with an Overweight rating and a $389 target price at Barclays.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: BKNG) was down almost 3% at $1,678.20 on Wednesday and was indicated down another 2% at $1,645.00 on Thursday. Wedbush Securities maintained a Neutral rating and $1,750 share price, noting that it was off to a strong start but the promise of a strong 2020 has been wiped out by the coronavirus. Needham maintained its Buy rating but trimmed its target price to $2,000 from $2,200.

Carvana Co. (NYSE: CVNA) was down 2.4% at $101.56 ahead of earnings and was indicated down 13% at $88.10 after revenues missed expectations. Carvana was maintained as Buy at Needham and as Neutral at Wedbush.

Casella Waste Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CWST) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this stock has a wonderful chart but guiding below the estimate has a way of bringing down estimates. Shares last closed at $52.51 and have a consensus price target of $55.00.

Continental Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLR) was down 5.1% at $20.78 ahead of earnings on Wednesday, but Thursday’s post-earnings reaction had shares down 24% at $15.72. KeyBanc Capital Markets downgraded it to Sector Weight from Overweight.

Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) was started with an Overweight rating and a $62 target price (versus a $44.84 close) at Morgan Stanley. It has a 52-week trading range of $40.46 to $69.21 and a consensus target price of $47.78.

Digimarc Corp. (NASDAQ: DMRC) was downgraded to Hold from Buy with a $24 target price (versus a $26.35 close) at Craig-Hallum.

Etsy Inc. (NASDAQ: ETSY) was up 1.6% at $50.69 ahead of earnings and was indicated up 9% at $55.25 afterward, with a 52-week high of $73.35 and a consensus target price of $63.94. Oppenheimer raised it to Outperform. Wedbush maintained its Outperform and $66 target price, noting that the end result was much better than it had feared.

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General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) was raised to Positive from Neutral with a $210 target price (versus a $171.55 close) at Susquehanna.

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) was started with an Underweight rating and a $62 target price at Barclays. The stock closed up over 6% at $74.70, after starting trials here in the United States to see if its drug can help cure the coronavirus. Shares were indicated up another 5.1% at $78.52 on Thursday.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $48 target price at JPMorgan. Shares closed up 0.2% at $39.23, and the consensus target price was $54.20.

Medifast Inc. (NYSE: MED) was last seen down 15% at $80.20, despite beating earnings expectations. Jefferies downgraded it to Hold from Buy.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) was started with an Equal Weight rating and a $36 target price (versus a $34.72 close) at Barclays. Pfizer had a consensus target price of $42.54.

Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD) was raised to Neutral from Sell at Guggenheim. The stock traded down 3.4% at $13.03, and its shares were indicated down at $12.80 on Thursday.

Sabre Corp. (NASDAQ: SABR) was down 16% at $16.15 on Wednesday after the travel software and technology provider warned of widespread cancellations and lower bookings due to the coronavirus. Oppenheimer downgraded it to Perform from Outperform. Its prior consensus target price was $23.50.

SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SEDG) was named as the Bull of the Day again at Zacks, which said that the stock has soared over the past year and the company topped earnings in the fourth quarter. Shares most recently closed at $132.41, with a consensus price target of $124.83.

Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) was down 0.6% at $76.59 ahead of earnings but was last seen trading up 4% at $79.65 afterward. Canaccord Genuity raised its Hold rating to Buy. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey reiterated its Buy rating and raised its target to $100. Needham reiterated its Buy rating and raised its target price to $105 from $80, and JPMorgan reiterated its Overweight rating and raised its target to $86 from $75.

StoneCo. Ltd. (NASDAQ: STNE) was raised to Overweight from Neutral and its target price was raised to $48 from $43 (versus a $41.57 close) at JPMorgan. The 52-week range is $23.15 to $45.72.

3D Systems Corp. (NYSE: DDD) was maintained as Neutral but its target price was raised to $10 from $8 (versus a $10.24 close) at B. Riley FBR.

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) was raised to Outperform from Neutral with a $48 target price (versus a $37.82 close) at Wedbush. That is after a 14.6% drop on Wednesday, and shares were indicated down another 2% at $37.10 on Thursday morning.

United Therapeutics Corp. (NASDAQ: UTHR) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform with a $145 target price (versus a $105.81 close) at Cowen.

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPCE) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform with a $25 target price at Credit Suisse, and Morgan Stanley downgraded it to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $30 target price. The stock closed down 15.5% at $28.75, and its recent high was $42.49. Shares were indicated down 14% at $24.60 on Thursday morning.

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With the coronavirus now on our shores, it makes sense to look at stocks that consumers need regardless of temporary or, perhaps even worse, long-term health issues.

Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Casper Sleep, CME, Deere, Domino’s Pizza, Home Depot, Nike, RealReal, Salesforce.com, SolarEdge Technologies, Sunrun, Walt Disney and many more.

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Stocks have hit new all-time highs in recent days after a very strong 2019, but they were looking a tad soft on Wednesday as the U.S.-China trade pact’s phase-one deal is being signed. The market strength has the indexes in overbought conditions and many key stocks have continued their 2019 surge even higher into 2020.

Many investors still have not made portfolio changes during and after a very strong market in 2019, but there is still time to get positioned for 2020. There are many market risks, concerns and headlines that may come with worry, but global growth may see a rekindled strength this year, while interest rates are expected to remain stable. This is also an election year in which much is at stake, and strategists are by and large calling for single-digit percentage gains in 2020.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for traders and long-term investors alike. Some of the daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while some calls cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

We have provided these analyst calls in a quick-hit summary for easy reading, and additional comments and trading data have been added on many calls. The consensus analyst price targets and other valuation metrics are from the Refinitiv sell-side research service.

Our 2020 Bull/Bear Outlook sees the Dow rising by about 7.4% to 30,650 this year, but there are outliers that could help the Dow rise by over 10% after a very strong 2019. The upside scenario puts Dow 32,000 easily within reach if only a few things go right this year.

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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations from Wednesday, January 15, 2020.

American Electric Power Co. Inc. (NYSE: AEP) was upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform and its target price was raised to $103 from $96 (versus a $94.98 prior close) at RBC Capital Markets.

Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND) has seen its shares surge more than 50% in just over a week, but Bernstein has downgraded shares of the plant-based meat alternative company to Market Perform from Outperform, with a $106 target price. Its prior consensus target price was $105.13.

BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (NASDAQ: TCPC) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Wells Fargo, and this business development company has roughly a 10% yield.

Blueprint Medicines Corp. (NASDAQ: BPMC) was reiterated as Outperform and its target price was raised to $122 from $141 (versus a $75.64 close) at Wedbush Securities. The firm has adjusted its financial model for updated 2020 regulatory guidance and over a stronger positive view of pralsetinib’s competitive potential in RET fusion-positive non-small cell lung cancer.

Canada Goose Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GOOS) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this high-end outerwear manufacturer may be running out of customers for its expensive wares. Shares last closed at $34.50 and have a consensus price target of $32.90.

Cardlytics Inc. (NASDAQ: CDLX) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James.

ConocoPhillips Co. (NYSE: COP) was started as Outperform with a $72 target price (versus a $65.14 close) at Robert W. Baird. Conoco has a consensus target price of $74.55, and its 52-week trading range is $50.13 to $71.01.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) was reiterated as Buy and the target price was raised to $71 from $65 (versus a $61.45 close) at Citigroup.

Dicks Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that limited firearm sales and innovative new house brands have been a big success for this retailer. Shares most recently closed at $49.40, with a consensus price target of $50.21.

Embraer S.A. (NYSE: ERJ) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy a UBS. The Brazilian jet maker’s American depositary shares closed down 0.2% at $19.68, in a 52-week range of $15.86 to $22.90 and with a consensus target price of $22.98.

Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $144 target price (versus a $127.67 close) at Jefferies. The REIT has close to a 3.3% dividend yield.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was downgraded to Underweight from Overweight and the target price was lowered to $49 from $66 at Barclays. The stock previously closed up 2.3% at $58.78, but it was indicated down almost 5% at $56.00 on Wednesday. The prior consensus target price was $69.25 ahead of the call. The 52-week trading range is $45.77 to $69.24.

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Huntsman Corp. (NYSE: HUN) was started as Buy with a $27 target price (versus a $23.21 close) at Merrill Lynch. The prior consensus target price was $26.88

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was reiterated as Outperform and the target price was raised to $147 from $142 at Credit Suisse after earnings.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Wedbush, which noted that its growth drivers are in place but its shares are fully valued and reflecting those improvements at the current share prices.

Luckin Coffee Inc. (NASDAQ: LK) was reinstated as Outperform with a $54.40 target price (versus a $45.80 close) at Credit Suisse. The firm sees its business model having evolved rapidly since its 2019 IPO to beyond coffee penetration from its larger retail network density, more product categories and strong traffic growth
all helping to build the company’s own ecosystem and growing its competitive moat.

Maxar Technologies Inc. (NYSE: MAXR) was raised to Neutral from Underperform with a $22 target price at Credit Suisse, with the firm noting that its liquidity risks are now significantly diminished.

Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTA) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $30 target price (versus a $25.36 close, after a 23.7% gain) at JPMorgan. The shares rose after its 2019 update and 2020 outlook were released.

Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE: NTR) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform and the target price was lowered to $53 from $68 (versus a $48.35 close) at Bernstein. The Canadian seller of crop nutrients has a 52-week trading range of $45.82 to $56.00, and its consensus target price was $58.28.

Peloton Interactive Inc. (NASDAQ: PTON) was started as Outperform with a $37 target price (versus a $29.69 close) at Wedbush. The firm addressed many upsides and risks in the call, and full details are available.

PG&E Corp. (NYSE: PCG) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral and its target price was raised to $15 from $11 at Citigroup. Shares closed up almost 8% at $11.92, and they were indicated up over 5% at $12.60 after this upgrade.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $104 target price (versus a $90.56 close) at DZ Bank. The prior consensus target price was $97.66, and the 52-week trading range is $49.10 to $94.11.

Realty Income Corp. (NYSE: O) was raised to Buy from Neutral with an $84 target price (versus a $74.96 close) at Mizuho.

Redfin Corp. (NASDAQ: RDFN) was reiterated as Outperform and its target price was raised to $28 from $26 (versus a $22.25 close) at Wedbush, with the new brokerage pricing structure being a focal point in the call.

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch. Shares closed up 0.3% at $67.97 ahead of the call, in a 52-week range of $65.72 to $100.34.

Tilly’s Inc. (NYSE: TLYS) was downgraded to Hold from Buy and the target price was lowered to $10.00 from $13.50 at Pivotal Research. It previously closed down 2.2% at $8.88, and the younger retail apparel destination store operator had a $12.13 consensus target price.

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Ubiquity Networks (NYSE: UI) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral but the target price was raised to $135 from $115 (versus a $185.07 close) at Credit Suisse, with the firm seeing little justification for the premium trading multiple as it factors in decelerating revenue and earnings growth.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) was started with an Overweight rating and an $8.50 target price (versus a $6.77 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. The prior consensus target price was $7.50, and the 52-week trading range is $4.21 to $6.81.

With more firms like BlackRock and Goldman Sachs making massively expanded commitments to ESG and climate change, Goldman Sachs has a list of top clean energy solar stock picks for big upside ahead.

Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Amazon.com, Apple, Baker Hughes, Bed Bath & Beyond, BP, GameStop, Meet, Total, Visa, Wynn Resorts and many more.

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Stocks were indicated to open lower on Thursday, a day after the Nasdaq regained lost footing when the Dow and S&P 500 turned in mixed results. This bull market is now well over eight years old, but equity investors have proven time after time that they want to and will buy any major pullback or sell-off in stocks. Investors also continue to search for new investing and trading ideas.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find new investing and trading ideas for our readers. Some of the daily analyst reports cover stocks to buy. Other reports cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

Consensus analyst price target data are from the Thomson Reuters sell-side research service. Additional color and commentary also has been added on most of the daily analyst calls.

These were the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and other research calls from Thursday, July 6, 2017.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $540 price target (versus a $516.83 prior close) at Morgan Stanley. Shares were down 9.6% on Wednesday, and they hit a 52-week low of $514.47. AutoZone’s 52-week high is $819.54, and it had a consensus analyst target price of $736.82.

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CECO Environmental Corp. (NASDAQ: CECE) was raised to Strong Buy with a $13 price target (versus a $9.51 close) at Needham.

Immunogen Inc. (NASDAQ: IMGN) was raised to Outperform from Sector Perform with a $12 price target (versus a $7.30 close) at RBC Capital Markets.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was started with a Buy rating and given a $44 price target (versus a $36.92 close) at Citigroup.

Medtronic PLC (NYSE: MDT) was started as Outperform at William Blair. Medtronic closed at $88.90, and it has a 52-week trading range of $69.35 to $89.72. The consensus target price is $92.15.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) was started as Outperform with a $71 price target (versus a $57.56 close) at Raymond James. Nike has a 52-week range of $49.01 to $60.33 and a consensus target price of $61.04.

Norfolk Southern Corp. (NYSE: NSC) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at Scotia Capital.

OncoSec Medical Inc. (NASDAQ: ONCS) was started with a Buy rating and assigned a $5 price target (versus a $1.16 close) at Dawson James. This is a tiny company with a $24 million market cap, and it has a 52-week range of $0.88 to $2.08.

O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) shares closed down almost 19%, with a $41.64 drop, to $178.77 after weaker sales and warning of weaker sales. The stock was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $200 price target at Morgan Stanley. It also was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform with a $195 price target at Credit Suisse. Its new 52-week range is $173.89 to $292.84, and its old consensus target price was $270.14.

Patterson Companies Inc. (NASDAQ: PDCO) was downgraded to Sell from Hold with a $39 price target (versus a $47.43 close) at Stifel.

Roche Holding was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS. Roche’s OTC-listed American depositary shares closed at $31.76 on Wednesday.

Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform with an $80 price target (versus a $65.74 close, after falling another 1.8%) at Bernstein. Schlumberger is still very close to a 52-week low of $65.10, and it has a 52-week high of $87.84. This valuation call suggests that the market has already been bracing for the worst case, and the prior consensus price target was still up at $86.14.

Weatherford International Ltd. (NYSE: WFT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform with a $5 price target (versus a $3.95 close) at Bernstein.

The top 11 analyst calls from June were calling for 100% to 400% upside over the next year. Also, Merrill Lynch has released its top thematic momentum and chart picks for the third quarter of 2017 with well above-consensus price targets on eight top large companies. Also, Jefferies sees five retail plays being mostly immune to Amazon’s endless e-commerce expansion.

Wednesday’s top analyst calls included BHP Billiton, Capital One, Chemours, Constellation Brands, Novartis, Teradyne and Weyerhaeuser.

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[cnxvideo id=”625482″ placement=”ros”]Stocks were indicated higher Thursday morning, and the barrage of earnings just keeps coming. Investors have proved over and over that they will buy each pullback. High valuations and even this bull market being seven and a half years old just are not stopping equity buyers. Investors are also looking for new ideas to generate gains or income ahead.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning of the week to find new investing and trading ideas for our readers. Some of these analyst research reports cover stocks to buy, and other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday morning:

Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) was last seen trading down 8.5% at $4.81 after earnings. The stock was reiterated as Outperform with a $6.50 price target at Wedbush Securities. Goldman Sachs has a Neutral rating but raised its target to $4.80. Groupon has a 52-week trading range of $2.15 to $5.94, and it had a consensus analyst target price of $5.24.

Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) was reiterated as Buy at Argus, and the firm raised its price target to $80 from $65. That is up over 30% from the $60.87 close, plus there is the 3% dividend yield. The firm saw earnings growth driven by strong sales of oncology drug Keytruda, Zepatier for hepatitis C and Gardasil for HPV.

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News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWSA) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Merrill Lynch, which noted that shares were within 7% of its $14 price objective. The firm believes that significant secular challenges still confront its News & Information Services segment and its 2017 estimates on earnings are now 17% below consensus. Shares closed up 2% on Wednesday at $12.91 and were indicated down 1.6% at $12.70 on Thursday. The 52-week range is $10.21 to $15.68, and the consensus target price is $15.47.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) was maintained as Outperform at Credit Suisse, but the firm lowered its price target to $125 from $128. Ahead of earnings, the firm sees premium assets but a company that is hampered by strategic challenges. The stock closed at $93.49, and it has a 52-week range of $86.25 to $120.65 and a $107.14 price target.

Vonage Holdings Corp. (NYSE: VG) was reiterated as Outperform at Oppenheimer, but the firm raised its target to $8 from $7 (versus a $7.08 prior close). Oppenheimer said earnings were solid, and the firm sees a ramp in investment and sales, with the Nexmo integration bring continual growth. The stock closed up 10% at $7.08 after earnings on Wednesday, and its 52-week range is $3.82 to $7.57.

Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Merrill Lynch. The firm is still a tad cautious as there are many moving pieces, but it sees the fundamentals being undeniably better. The shares closed up over 5% at $56.52 on Wednesday and were indicated up 4.4% at $59.00 on Thursday.

You can follow @Jonogg on Twitter if you want the daily analyst calls and research updates directly on your Twitter feed.

Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades were seen as follows:

Allegiant Travel Co. (NASDAQ: ALGT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James.

BOK Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: BOKF) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Macquarie. Wedbush reiterated its Neutral rating with a $69 price target.

Entergy Corp. (NYSE: ETR) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight with a $68 price target (versus a $72.28 close) at Morgan Stanley.

Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup. Shares were indicated up 1% at $97.11 on Thursday.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Neutral from Underweight and the price target was lowered to $14 from $18 (versus a $25.22 close) at JPMorgan.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: NCLH) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight with a $44 price target (versus a $37.97 close) at JPMorgan.

Quintiles IMS Holdings Inc. (NYSE: Q) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight with a $73 price target (versus a $69.90 close) at JPMorgan.

Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. (NYSE: SNI) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: SIX) was reiterated as Buy at Janney, but the firm did lower its fair value target to $62 from $64 (versus a $53.89 close). Janney believes the quarter was negatively affected by poor weather and that its business fundamentals are still strong.

Wednesday’s top analyst calls were in Apple, Baker Hughes, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Dollar General, General Motors, Lowe’s, Under Armour and over a dozen more.

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[cnxvideo id=”655240″ placement=”ros”]Stocks were looking for direction on Tuesday despite a slew of Dow and S&P 500 earnings reports. Investors still seem willing to buy each pullback, even if there are high valuations and a bull market that is seven and a half years old. Investors are also looking for new ideas to generate gains or income ahead.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning. The goal is to find new investing and trading ideas for our readers. Some analyst research reports cover stocks to buy, and some reports feature stocks to sell or to avoid.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday morning:

Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ARIA) already received one full analyst review on Monday, and shares closed down 9.7% at $9.37. Now JMP Securities has downgraded it to Market Perform from Market Outperform. The stock has a 52-week trading range of $4.37 to $14.34 and a consensus analyst price target of $13.33.

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) was raised to Hold from Sell and the price target was raised to $39 from $36 at Independent Research. It has a 52-week range of $32.22 to $43.89 and a consensus price target of $41.95.

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Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) was raised to Sector Perform from Underperform with an $8 price target (versus a $6.36 prior close) at RBC Capital Markets. The 52-week range is $1.50 to $8.15, and the consensus price target is $7.37.

Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN) was started as Positive at Susquehanna. Han Celestial has a 52-week range of $33.12 to $56.99 and has a consensus analyst price target of $43.38.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) was started as Perform at Oppenheimer. The stock was last seen down 2% at $50.50 on the heels of Under Armour earnings. Nike has a 52-week range of $50.96 to $68.19 and a consensus price target of $62.41.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Guggenheim. It was maintained as Buy and the price target was raised to $97 from $90 at UBS. Shares closed up 1% at $83.17 ahead of earnings and were down 0.5% at $82.75 on Tuesday. Visa has a 52-week range of $66.12 to $83.79 and a consensus price target of $92.80.

You can follow @Jonogg on Twitter if you want the daily analyst calls and research updates directly on your Twitter feed.

Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades were seen as follows:

AAR Corp. (NYSE: AIR) was started with a Buy rating at Gabelli.

Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE: ANET) was started as Buy with a $107 price target (versus an $84.03 close) at Argus.

Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.

Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL) was started as Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) was started as Neutral with a $104 price target (versus a $98.98 close) at Goldman Sachs.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was started as Buy with a $30 price target at Brean Capital.

Nutanix Inc. (NASDAQ: NTNX) was started as Outperform at William Blair and as Buy at Needham. Raymond James started coverage at Market Perform, and Stifel started Nutanix as Hold.

Ocwen Financial Corp. (NYSE: OCN) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.

PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE: PPG) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus.

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Superior Energy Services Inc. (NYSE: SPN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Synergy Resources Corp. (NYSEMKT: SYRG) was started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Tidewater Inc. (NYSE: TDW) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Argus.

Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) was raised to Outperform from Neutral with a $105 price target (versus an $86.74 close) at Wedbush. The firm does not love AT&T’s strategy, but it thinks the merger will go through.

VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.

Monday’s top analyst calls were in Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Comcast, ConEd, Electronic Arts, Kinder Morgan, 3M, Time Warner and about a dozen more.

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[cnxvideo id=”509257″ placement=”ros”]Stocks closed marginally lower on Monday, but the markets were looking for direction on Tuesday. Investors seem to have few worries as the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq are all just under all-time highs. The bull market is now well over seven years old and the S&P 500 is valued at 18 times forward earnings. What is amazing is that investors have proven time after time, without fail, that they will buy their favorite stocks in every market sell-off. Those same investors are also on the hunt for new ideas to generate income or gains.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning of the week. The goal is to find new investing and trading ideas. Some of these analyst reports cover stocks to buy. Other reports feature stocks to sell or avoid.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday morning:

BHP Billiton PLC (NYSE: BBL) was raised to Buy from Hold and the price target was raised to $33 from $28 (versus a $27.42 prior close) at Jefferies. The stock has a 52-week trading range of $16.36 to $36.66 and a consensus analyst price target of $30.32.

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) was reiterated as Buy and the price target was raised to $98 from $90 (versus an $87.96 close) at Argus. The firm sees commodities and currency nearing inflection points and sees margins rebounding off of lows over the next two to three years.

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Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS. Shares closed at $22.11, have a consensus price target of $22.75 and have a 52-week range of $12.52 to $22.42.

Medtronic PLC (NYSE: MDT) was started with a Buy rating at Citigroup. The 52-week trading range is $63.98 to $89.27, and the consensus price target is $90.66.

Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) was raised to Buy from Hold at Stifel. It closed at $11.82 and has a 52-week range of $8.06 to $15.91. The consensus price target is $12.97, and shares were indicated up 3.4% at $12.22 on Tuesday morning.

Sealed Air Corp. (NYSE: SEE) was started with a Buy rating and given a $54 price target (versus a $46.88 close) at UBS. The 52-week range is $38.02 to $52.83, and the consensus price target is $54.54. Shares were indicated up 3% at $48.35 on Tuesday morning.

Orbital ATK Inc. (NYSE: OA) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus, but Wells Fargo raised its rating to Outperform from Market Perform. The stock closed at $74.48, has a 52-week range of $67.04 to $94.92 and has a consensus analyst target of $91.75.

You can follow @Jonogg on Twitter if you want the daily analyst calls and research updates directly on your Twitter feed.

Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades were seen as follows:

Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: MDRX) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform with a $17 price target (versus a $12.68 close) at Leerink.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE: BIP) was started as Outperform with a $59 price target (versus a $48.87 close) at Credit Suisse.

CST Brands Inc. (NYSE: CST) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Macquarie. Gabelli lowered its rating to Hold from Buy.

Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN) was reiterated as Buy and the price target was raised to $51 from $41 (versus a $44.10) at Argus. The team believes that Devon’s focus on liquids production in unconventional North American plays is underappreciated by investors.

First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE: FHN) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) was already rated as Outperform at Credit Suisse, but the firm added it to the prized U.S. Focus List, as catalysts should drive a rebound in share price performance.

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Oasis Petroleum Inc. (NYSE: OAS) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform with a $10 price target (versus a $9.87 close) at BMO Capital Markets.

ResMed Inc. (NYSE: RMD) was downgraded to Underperform and the price target was cut to $58 from $60 (versus a $69.78 close) at Jefferies.

United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) was started as Outperform with a $57 price target (versus a $46.95 close) at Imperial Capital.

Goldman Sachs has tempered its expectations for oil gains this year, noting a $45 per barrel level for 2017 due to ample or over-supply metrics.

This almost seems impossible to understand, particularly if you trust analyst views in general, but Caterpillar is the best performing Dow stock so far in 2016 — and by far!

Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades were in shares of Garmin, Micron Technology, U.S. Steel, Urban Outfitters, Williams Companies, Hormel Foods and about a dozen more.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: BHP Billiton, Deere, Logitech, Medtronic, Square, Sealed Air, Orbital ATK and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

[cnxvideo id=”625481″ placement=”ros”]Stocks on the major indexes keep challenging and hitting all-time highs, and the markets were indicated slightly higher yet again on Thursday. Despite high valuations for the stock market, investors keep hunting for new ideas to make money. This may come from dividends, or from overlooked opportunities, value stocks and more. The reality is that investors are more than willing to buy stocks on every pullback.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning of the week. The goal is to find new investing and trading ideas for its readers. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy. Other reports feature stocks to sell or avoid.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday morning:

American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $22 price target (versus a $17.98 prior close) at Wunderlich. The stock has a consensus analyst price target of $18.27 and a 52-week trading range of $12.78 to $18.60.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the price target was cut to $85 from $95 (versus an $89.11 close) at Nomura. It has a consensus price target of $101.72 and a 52-week range of $61.20 to $93.80.

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Shake Shack Inc. (NYSE: SHAK) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $48 price target (versus a $40.87 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. The consensus target price is $39.70, and the 52-week range of $30.00 to $64.79.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight and the price target was cut to $12 from $23 after Wednesday’s disastrous drop of 30% to $10.31. Many more downgrades were seen on Wednesday. SunPower has a new 52-week range of $10.15 to $31.10.

Union Pacific Corp. (NYSE: UNP) was started with an Overweight rating and assigned a $114 price target (versus a $92.44 close) at Atlantic Equities. It has a $95.00 consensus price target and a 52-week range of $67.06 to $98.28.

Other key analyst upgrades and downgraded were seen as follows:

Canadian Pacific Railway (NYSE: CP) was started with an Overweight rating at Atlantic Equities.

CBOE Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral with a $65 price objective (versus a $68.29 close) at Merrill Lynch.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Ocular Therapeutix Inc. (NASDAQ: OCUL) was started with an Outperform rating and assigned a $21 price target (versus a $5.84 close) at JMP Securities.

Owens Corning (NYSE: OC) was started with an Underperform rating and a $51 price target (versus a $54.23 close) at Credit Suisse.

PHH Corp. (NYSE: PHH) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform with a $17 price target (versus a $14.92 close) at Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

Public Storage (NYSE: PSA) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch.

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Quorum Health Corp. (NYSE: QHC) was downgraded to Sell from an already cautious Neutral rating with a big downside price target of $5.50 (versus a $10.02 close) at UBS. Shares were last seen trading down 39% at $6.12 after earnings.

Team Health Holdings Inc. (NYSE: TMH) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $47 price target, down from a $49 target, but versus a $36.04 prior close, at Jefferies.

Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZBH) was started as Buy with a $155 price target (versus a $128.92 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Wednesday’s top analyst calls included Eldorado Gold, SLM, SunPower, Walt Disney, Yelp, Myriad Genetics and over a dozen more.

You can follow @Jonogg on Twitter if you want the daily analyst calls and research updates directly on your Twitter feed.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: American Eagle, Lam Research, Shake Shack, SunPower, Union Pacific and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently announced a financial fraud case against Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) and former executives accused of various accounting failures that left investors without accurate depictions of company finances.

In this case, technology manufacturer Logitech agreed to pay a $7.5 million penalty for fraudulently inflating its fiscal year 2011 financial results to meet earnings guidance and committing other accounting-related violations during a five-year period.

The company’s then-controller, Michael Doktorczyk, and then-director of accounting, Sherralyn Bolles, agreed to pay penalties of $50,000 and $25,000, respectively, for violations related to Logitech’s warranty accrual accounting and failure to amortize intangibles from an earlier acquisition.

The SEC filed a complaint in federal court Thursday against Logitech’s then-chief financial officer, Erik Bardman, and then-acting controller, Jennifer Wolf, alleging that they deliberately minimized the write-down of millions of dollars of excess component parts for a product for which Logitech had excess inventory in fiscal 2011.
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For Logitech’s financial statements, the two executives falsely assumed the company would build all the components into finished products despite their knowledge of contrary facts and events.

In the Logitech case, former CEO Gerald Quindlen was not accused of any misconduct but has returned $194,487 in incentive-based compensation and stock sale profits received during the period of accounting violations.

Shares of Logitech were trading up 1.2% at $15.71 on Friday, with a consensus analyst price target of $16.50 and a 52-week trading range of $12.52 to $16.62.

The post SEC Announces Fraud Case Against Logitech appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Stocks were indicated lower again on Tuesday, with Dow and S&P futures down nearly 1% after a 4% drop in the price of oil. Investors are getting used to sell-offs in 2016, even into rallies. The trend for more than four years, before January, was that every stock market sell-off was met with investors buying the dips. Maybe nothing can last forever after all.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst reports each morning to find new investing and trading ideas for its readers. Some of these analyst reports are on stocks to buy, while others cover stocks to sell or avoid.

These are this Tuesday’s top analyst calls.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) has now passed Apple as the world’s largest market cap. We have seen raised targets from the likes of Jefferies, RBC Capital Markets, Piper Jaffray and Credit Suisse. Alphabet closed up 1.2% at $770.77 before earnings, and shares were last seen up 5% at $810.00 afterward.

Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Wells Fargo. Duke closed up 2.26% at $77.00 on Monday, above its consensus analyst price target of $73.74 but still well within the 52-week trading range of $65.50 to $87.18.

Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) was raised to Buy from Hold at Stifel. Mattel closed down 3% at $26.76 before earnings, and shares were last seen up 6% at $28.40 afterward. Its pre-earnings consensus analyst target was $27.70 and its 52-week range is $19.45 to $30.44.
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Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Macquarie. The stock closed at $25.71 and has a consensus analyst target of $35.13 and a 52-week range of $24.67 to $41.04.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $122.00 price target (versus a $94.09 prior close) at Piper Jaffray. Shares closed up 2.4% at $94.09 on Monday. Netflix has a $126.12 consensus analyst target and a 52-week range of $58.46 to $133.27.

Southwestern Energy Co. (NYSE: SWN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. It was also downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.

Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) was downgraded to Sell from Hold with a $14 price target at Stifel. Twitter still supposedly has a consensus analyst target closer to $30. The 52-week range is $15.48 to $53.49.

Follow @JonOgg on Twitter to receive the daily analyst calls in your Twitter feed each morning.

Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades were seen in the following on Tuesday:
Alere Inc. (NYSE: ALR) rose 45% to $54.11 after news that it was being acquired by Abbott Labs. Alere was downgraded to Hold from Buy at both Jefferies and Canaccord Genuity. Goldman Sachs downgraded it to Neutral from Buy. Raymond James downgraded Alere to Market Perform from Outperform.

Antero Resources Corp. (NYSE: AR) was downgraded to Reduce from Buy at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (NYSE: GOL) was raised to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Integrated Device Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: IDTI) was up 0.1% ahead of earnings, but its shares were last seen down 13% at $21.99 afterward. Wedbush Securities has raised its rating to Outperform from Neutral. Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded it to Neutral from Buy.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Plantronics Inc. (NYSE: PLT) was downgraded to Underperform from Outperform at Raymond James.

Praxair Inc. (NYSE: PX) was downgraded to Sector Weight from Overweight at KeyBanc Capital Markets.
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Realty Income Corp. (NYSE: O) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Sysco Corp. (NYSE: SYY) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets.

If you missed Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades, they included Chipotle Mexican Grill, Cisco Systems, Micron Technology, Seagate Technology, Vertex Pharmaceutical, Walt Disney, Xerox and over a dozen more companies.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Google, Duke Energy, Mattel, Morgan Stanley, Netflix, Southwestern Energy, Twitter and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

December has historically been a good month for the stock market, but there are plenty of individual stocks that don’t look like attractive bets as we near the end of the year. While these stocks can be found in all sectors and may have their own unique risk factors, there are two issues that investors should be particularly mindful of: indebtedness – whether corporate or consumer – and the prospect of higher interest rates. Here are nine stocks to avoid in December:

Ford

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) does have good Decembers sometimes, but less often than most household name stocks. The real reason to avoid Ford in 2016, along with other major automotive companies like General Motors Company (NYSE: GM), is that its current business model is built on pyramiding consumer debt. This is all well and good as long as interest rates are close to zero, but as soon as inflation heats up and the Federal Reserve has to raise interest rates faster, the whole pyramid could topple. But if you believe inflation will never tick up again, by all means, buy Ford.

Caesars Entertainment

Caesars Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ: CZR) is a classic case of what happens when you have too much debt. This troubled casino has been involved in a legalistic shell game of trying to hide its assets from its creditors. Before it declared bankruptcy, it shifted its valuable assets to an affiliated entity that its bondholders had no lien on, and they justifiably were quite angered. Court battles ensued, and it is not looking good for Caesars. The case is ongoing, and any negative judgment for Caesars could mean the final gutting of the company.

Wynn

Wynn Resorts, Limited (NASDAQ: WYNN) has suffered the most protracted decline in its history. The decline from late 2007 to March 2009 was worse in terms of severity. Back then, Wynn lost 90% of its value from top to bottom. Now it has only lost 75%. Wynn is not a good bottom-picking play yet because Macau is still very unstable. The Chinese economy is likely to get worse due to the monetary situation there, and China’s government has not been helpful in interfering with Macau’s business. The bottom will come eventually for Wynn and Macau in general, but we probably haven’t seen it yet.

ALSO READ: 10 Stocks to Pick Up in December

Logitech

The time of trendy computer mice has come and gone. Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) had its day in the sun, but is now something of a forgotten brand. It is struggling to maintain profitability and there looks to be a hard ceiling for the stock at around $16.30 a share. Aside from 2013, Logitech has not had a good December since 2009. Could it this year? Anything is possible, but if you’re looking for December gains, there are better companies.

AbbVie

There are certain disadvantages to selling one of the most successful drugs of all time. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) is going to be hounded with warnings about the impending expiration of Humira’s patent by the end of next year, and the story in 2016 looks like it will be the slow and painful pricing in of that fact. Humira sales account for about 65% of the biotech company’s total revenues. It is the elephant in the room, but this time everyone is talking about it.

Starbucks

There is nothing fundamentally wrong with Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX). It’s just that a long-term chart looks parabolic, and it is about to become the world’s first $100 billion coffee company. Yes, the company keeps growing, but that valuation just seems a bit much, along with a P/E ratio pushing 35. Retailers like Starbucks are also quite prone to inflation when it finally registers, and minimum wage battles could affect it negatively next year, as well. Yes, Starbucks could conceivably keep climbing higher, but at some point that will stop. This is the proverbial picking up nickels in front of a steamroller.

Barnes and Noble

Barnes and Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is another company long past its prime, awaiting the inevitable. The most recent plunge since July is the worst since 2008, and aside from trying to cut expenses, there looks to be little the book retailer can do to compete. Decembers are less than impressive for the stock historically, and a long-term chart looks truly frenetic and unstable.

Buffalo Wild Wings

Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD) has been a great growth story for years, but its stock movements have changed patterns since 2013. Now, instead of three steps forward and two steps back, it looks to be on an intense seesaw. Growth has stalled a bit this year and sports bars could also be seriously affected by any significant rise in consumer prices come 2016.

Junk Bond Funds

To end on a slightly different note, stay away from high-yield bonds. The SPDR Barclays Capital High Yield Bond Fund (NYSEARCA: JNK) looks to have topped out in 2014. Interest rates are on their way up either by Fed or by market, and the first victims will be high-yield bondholders. Junk bonds have already had a horrible 2015 and the Fed hasn’t even raised rates yet. Imagine what could happen when it actually does.

The post 9 Stocks to Avoid in December and Beyond appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) may not have become forgotten about, but the days of endless growth from endless peripherals are long gone. The move to mobile internet via smartphones and tablets has not exactly been the greatest thing for Logitech. After all, it makes all those peripherals that the new generation of tech users said their parents use for PCs — even if Logitech sells many gadgets, accessories and peripherals for video games.

Logitech has already sold keyboards that were compatible for the iPad generations for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), but the new product refresh may bring more interest to Logitech.

The first caveat for success here is that the new iPad Pro has to actually take off and be a big success, something that is not assured based upon prior iPad ramp-ups and refreshes having lost steam. The second caveat is that consumers have see and prefer this third-party keyboard from Logitech. Obviously, both caveats come with risks.

Logitech announced on Wednesday, shortly after the debut of the wave of new Apple products out in California, that it is working with Apple to leverage the new iPad Pro smart connector. The company has announced the Logitech CREATE Keyboard Case for iPad Pro. This is said to be developed closely with Apple to leverage the new Smart Connector, and it will bring to market the first ever third-party keyboard compatible with the iPad Pro Smart Connector.

The target here is to escape the need to power on, set up or charge the keyboard. Logitech’s CREATE keyboard automatically powers on and pairs with your iPad Pro when placed in the typing position, without the need to use Bluetooth pairing and without the worry of charging your keyboard again.

Logitech’s CREATE Keyboard Case for iPad Pro will be available in the U.S., and key markets in Europe and Asia at the same time the iPad Pro is available for purchase. While this could be a new source of revenue, Logitech said that additional product information and the actual pricing will be available in the coming weeks.

ALSO READ: Our Take on New iPhone, iPad, TV, Watch

Logitech’s blog announcement said:

CREATE is our best iPad keyboard. Ever. Powered by the iPad Pro via Smart Connector, it never needs charging. With a direct magnetic connection it never needs pairing. And since it’s from the keyboard experts, CREATE always provides the world-class typing experience you’ve come to expect from Logitech.

Michele Hermann, vice president of mobility at Logitech, said:

Logitech is the world leader in iPad keyboards, and we’re introducing the Logitech CREATE Keyboard Case – developed together with Apple – to enhance and perfectly compliment the iPad Pro. With a full-size keyboard designed to work with iOS 9, the Logitech CREATE will help make the iPad Pro a creativity and productivity powerhouse. Even the color and finish of the keyboard are meticulously crafted to feel and look like the other half of your iPad Pro.

As far as what to expect for pricing, the prior Logitech keyboards have been priced from $69.99 to $99.99. With this being targeted at companies and higher-end consumers, we will have to wait to see what this will generate in revenues.

Either way, you can guess at some numbers and then think about what say 1 million units could mean – or 2 million, or 3 million units. Now take a look at the images below to see the keyboard from Logitech and the keyboard featured on the Apple store website. Will Logitech win, or will another keyboard maker? And if this is going to be less than 1 million units through time, then you can look at existing revenues and see that it will not make much of a positive impact.

Then take your estimates (again, a guess) and line it up against the past and present expectations ahead. Thomson Reuters has estimates of $2.06 billion in 2015 revenue, followed by an expected $2.09 billion in 2016 revenue.

Revenues in dollars for the last four years were as follows (with the years being a March end, so we ratcheted these back one quarter for the annual periods):

• $2.114 billion in 2014;
• $2.128 billion in 2013;
• $2.099 billion in 2012;
• and $2.316 billion in 2011.

Logitech shares were up 8-cents at $13.63 in New York trading on Wednesday afternoon, with a market cap of about $2.25 billion. It has a consensus analyst price target of $17.95 and a 52-week range of $11.20 to $16.38.

ALSO READ: 6 Alternative Energy Winners for 2016

See Logitech and Apple images below.

The post Could the Apple iPad Pro Bring a Big Revenue Boost for Logitech? appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

With a third of the year in the books, the very up and down stock market is poised to wind up the first-quarter earnings reports. That also means that insider activity will start to heat up as windows that have been shut during the reporting season start to open up. Despite the recent volatility, and pretty sluggish overall market action, all the indexes remain near record highs, which could inspire some big trades this month and beyond.

We cover insider buying every week at 24/7 Wall St. and despite the markets clinging to levels near all-time highs, insider buying has remained reasonably consistent year to date. We continue to monitor sectors like energy, looking for trends and buyers taking advantage of price irregularities.

Here are companies that reported notable insider buying this past week:

Ultratech Inc. (NASDAQ: UTEK) had a very influential 10% owner buying more stock this week. Dallas-based Carlson Capital bought a large 483,000 share block of the semiconductor capital equipment company. The firm bought shares at prices that ranged from $17.22 to $19.52. The total for the buy came to a sizable $8.08 million. Shares were trading at Friday’s close at $20.39, so a very well-timed buy indeed.

Radius Health Inc. (NASDAQ: RDUS) had a 10% owner of the company come in and add to its position this week. A company called Biotech Growth bought a 100,000 share block of the stock at prices that ranged from $36.59 to $38.38. The total for the buy came to $3.75 million. Radius Health is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutics for patients with osteoporosis and other serious endocrine-mediated diseases. Shares closed trading on Friday at $36.58.

ALSO READ: Massive Brokerage Trades Highlight Insider Selling This Week

Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) had a director at the company buying stock this past week. That director purchased a block of 10,000 shares at $39.95 apiece. The total for the buy was right at $400,000. The company designs, sells, installs and services security, fire detection, suppression and life safety products worldwide. Shares ended the week at $39.63.

Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE: TRV) is another company that had a director buying stock this week. The director at the insurance giant purchased 2,000 shares of the company stock at $103.06 per share. The total for the buy came to $216,000. The stock closed trading Friday at $102.12.

Peoples Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ: PFIS) continued the trend of directors buying stock when one bought a 5,000-share block of the stock at $41.08 per share. The total for the purchase came to $205,000. Peoples Financial Services operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Security Bank and Trust Company, which provides commercial and retail banking services primarily in Northeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New York. The stock was changing hands at $39.75 at the end of trading on Friday.

These companies also reported insider buying this week: ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN), Dana Holding Corp. (NYSE: DAN), Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) and Nucor Corp. (NYSE: NUE).

While hardly a huge volume week, things are starting to perk up again. Watch for much higher numbers, as May and June will see windows opening back up for insiders at major companies.

ALSO READ: 5 Big Stocks That Are Expected to Outperform Apple

The post Insider Buying Steady as Earnings Season Begins to Wind Down appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Stocks were indicated higher on Thursday morning after trying to find support this week. For well over two years now investors have bought stocks on each and every dip. 24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst reports each morning to find new investment and trading ideas for its readers.

Some daily analyst reports cover stocks to buy. Some discuss stocks to sell or to avoid. These are this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades.

Alkermes PLC (NASDAQ: ALKS) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $25 price target (versus a $20.83 close) at Evercore ISI.

Amarin Corp. PLC (NASDAQ: AMRN) was raised to Buy from Neutral and the price target was raised all the way to $10 from $2.50 (versus a $1.94 close) at a firm called HC Wainwright. Keep in mind that Amarin raised almost $53 million in a restricted stock private placement just a week ago. Other firms have issued big upside targets as well, but this one takes the cake. Amarin shares were indicated up 20% at $2.30 or so after this call.

CONSOL Energy Inc. (NYSE: CNX) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral and the price objective was cut to $26 from $33 (versus a $28.70 close) at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Raymond James.

ALSO READ: Warren Buffett’s Top 8 Dividend Stocks

GNC Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNC) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight and the price target was cut to $35 from $42 (versus a $32.61 close) at Barclays.

Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at J.P. Morgan. This was after shares fell over 4% on Wednesday after guidance.

Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. (NYSE: MHR) was raised to Buy from Neutral and the price target was raised to $4 from $2 (versus a $2.37 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Netgear Inc. (NASDAQ: NTGR) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Raymond James. It was just on Monday that Goldman Sachs raised its rating, but up to Neutral.

ALSO READ: Big Bank Winners of Fed’s Dividend and Buyback Hike Approval

Oncothyreon Inc. (NASDAQ: ONTY) was started as Buy with a $2.50 price target (versus a $1.68 close) at Jefferies. This coverage is after a post-earnings move higher of 6% on Wednesday.

Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral and the price objective was cut to $5 from $7 (versus a $6.12 close) at Merrill Lynch.

Plantronics Inc. (NYSE: PLT) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

Verisk Analytics Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSK) was raised to Buy from Hold and the price target was raised to $81 from $77 (versus a $69.78 close) at Evercore ISI.

Windstream Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: WIN) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup.

In case you missed Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades, they were in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Duke Energy, EMC, SanDisk, Starbucks, McDonald’s and a dozen more.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Amarin, CONSOL, Garmin, GNC, HP, Peabody, Windstream and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Stocks are trying to recover on Monday, and earnings season is starting to wind down. Investors want to find profits, but they want to avoid catching the top or picking bad stocks. 24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning for new ideas for its readers. These are this Monday’s top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations.

Aircastle Ltd. (NYSE: AYR) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Cowen and Co.

Amarin Corp. (NASDAQ: AMRN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Barclays PLC (NYSE: BCS) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform by BNP Paribas. RBC Capital Markets also downgraded the British bank to Sector Perform from Outperform.

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) was reiterated as Buy with a $164 price target at Sterne Agee, ahead of next week’s investor day.

Boulder Brands Inc. (NASDAQ: BDBD) was raised to Buy from Neutral and the price target was raised to $23 from $15 by SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

READ MORE: Ten Analyst Stocks Trading Under $10 With Big Upside

Carlyle Group L.P. (NASDAQ: CG) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Cardiovascular Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSII) was started with a Buy rating and a $38 price target at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) was maintained as Underperform with a $20 price target at Credit Suisse, ahead of this week’s earnings report.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) was started as Outperform with a $65 price target by Credit Suisse.

Forest Oil Corp. (NYSE: FST) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Macquarie.

READ MORE: America’s Ten Most Unusual Public Companies

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Macquarie.

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (NYSE: KKR) was started as Buy with a $28 price target at Goldman Sachs.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $145 price target at Goldman Sachs.

NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James.

Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight by Morgan Stanley, a rare upgrade considering this is a coal stock.

Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $45 price target at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. Over the weekend, we also pointed out last week’s two upgrades to Neutral and showed why Twitter may have found a near-term bottom.

READ MORE: Baird’s Best Technology Growth Stocks to Buy Now

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It is the first full trading week of 2014, and analysts are out with many ratings changes this Tuesday. Stocks have slid marginally since the end of 2013 after a stellar year, and investors are continuing to position themselves for 2014. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many Wall Street analyst research reports each morning in order to find new investment ideas for our readers. Some of these analyst calls are stocks to buy and some are stocks to sell. These are this Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall Street research firms.

Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) was kept as an official Buy rating, but the credit card issuer and banking company was added to the prized Conviction Buy list at Goldman Sachs. The firm’s price target was raised to $90 from $80 in the call. After it closed at $76.59, its consensus price target was $79.19, and note that the prior street high price target from analysts was $88 before this new $90 price target.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the price target was cut to $31 at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The firm said that its recovery limits upside as most of that recovery is priced into the stock. Now the investment case transitions into an execution story, and targets at this point were called imprecise with only modest upside.

LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the price target was cut to $240 from $270 (versus a $203.92 close) at Merrill Lynch. The team called the company a best of breed franchise, but it believes that the stock may take a pause on tougher comparable growth numbers. Merrill Lynch is below the street on 2014 and 2015 earnings estimates. It also said that LinkedIn could be range bound until 2015 estimates allow for more upside.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) is trading higher by 2% after the troubled yoga-themed and exercise apparel maker was raised to Buy from Neutral at D.A. Davidson. Its price target was raised to $73 from $67 in the call, implying about 26% upside from the $57.78 closing price. The consensus price target is right at about $70 now.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight and the price target was lowered to $310 from $330 at Morgan Stanley. Keep in mind that the target was already under the closing price of $359.57. Maybe 200 times current earnings and 90 times expected 2014 earnings is just too high of a valuation.

Other key analyst calls were as follows:

Aegon N.V. (NYSE: AEG) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) and TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (NYSE: AMTD) were both downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS, although this was also just featured as a top cyber security stock to buy for 2014 in another analyst montage for the sector.

Chubb Corp. (NYSE: CB) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight by Barclays.

Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) was downgraded to Sell from an already cautious Hold rating and the price target is now $87 (versus a $100.76 close) at Deutsche Bank. The firm did raise the rating on DJIA component UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) to Buy from Hold with an $85 price target (versus a $74.24 close).

International Game Technology (NYSE: IGT) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus, based on on decelerating growth prospects and near-term headwinds.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised up to Equal Weight from Underweight by Barclays.

Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) was downgraded to Sell from an already cautious Neutral rating, and with a $40 price target (versus a $46.62 closing price), at Goldman Sachs.

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Mylan Inc. (NASDAQ: MYL) was started as Outperform at RBC Capital Markets.

Senior Housing Properties Trust (NYSE: SNH) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

STMicroelectronics N.V. (NYSE: STM) was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight by Barclays.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA) was started with a Sector Perform rating at RBC Capital Markets.

Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) was upgraded to the Top Pick list from an Outperform rating and the price target was raised to $87 from $85 at RBC Capital Markets.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Capital One, Chesapeake, LinkedIn, Lululemon, Netflix and More appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Investors and traders seem to be constantly looking for fresh research ideas that will lead to higher income or more profits. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many fresh research calls each morning to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks. We are breaking out the positive analyst calls as far as stocks to buy and positive research calls today. These are some of this Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, initiations and positive analyst research calls seen from Wall Street after a three-day weekend.

Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE: LLY) was raised to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC (NYSE: GSK) was raised to Buy from Hold at Jefferies.

Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.

See also: UBS Live Key Call List Features the Top Nine Stocks to Buy Now

Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) was raised to Buy from Hold with $54 price target at Jefferies.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE: NVO) was raised to Hold from Sell at Deutsche Bank.

PSEG Co. (NYSE: PEG) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.

See also: Deutsche Bank’s Defensive Food Stocks to Buy

Qiwi PLC (NASDAQ: QIWI) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse and started as Outperform at William Blair.

W.R. Grace (NYSE: GRA) was put on the Conviction Buy List with a $105 price target at Goldman Sachs.

The quiet period for Intelsat S.A. (NYSE: I) ended and the analysts were mixed to positive: started as Neutral at Credit Suisse, started as Hold at Deutsche Bank, started as Overweight at Evercore Partners and started as Buy at Nomura.

Read also: Top Analyst Downgrades for Tuesday

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24/7 Wall St. is tracking several key analyst calls this morning.

Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) has seen mixed calls this morning. The discount retailer was raised to Hold from Sell at Deutsche Bank, cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity and cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc. (NYSE: DVA) is a Buffett stock that keeps growing in size for the conglomerate, but it was cut to Hold from Buy based on valuation at Deutsche Bank. Shares are indicated down 1%, but this is up about 10% so far in 2013.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) was named Bear of the Day as smartphones are eating up its peripheral sales, according to Zacks Investment Research.

SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) was cut to Underperform from Market Perform by the team at BMO Capital Markets, and shares are indicated down about 6% at $5.38 in active early trading.

SAP A.G. (NYSE: SAP) was raised to Overweight from Neutral at HSBC, shares are up almost 1% for its New York ADRs, and shares were up 0.8% in local trading in Europe.

-Jon C. Ogg

The post Five Key Analyst Calls to Watch appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls.

American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Angie’s List Inc. (NASDAQ: ANGI) started as Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) raised to Hold from Sell at Deutsche Bank, cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity and cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

Clean Harbors Inc. (NYSE: CLH) raised to Outperform at Baird.

DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc. (NYSE: DVA) cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HTZ) named Bull of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) named Bear of the Day as smartphones are eating up its peripheral sales, according to Zacks Investment Research.

Mellanox Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: MLNX) raised to Outperform at JMP Securities.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs (full note).

Nanometrics Inc. (NASDAQ: NANO) started as Buy with $20 target at Canaccord Genuity.

New York Community Bancorp Inc. (NYSE: NYCB) raised to Outperform at KBW.

SAP A.G. (NYSE: SAP) raised to Overweight at HSBC.

SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) cut to Underperform at BMO.

UBS sees enterprise storage changing the landscape of traditional drives and storage ahead.

Here are 11 stocks which analysts expect to rise 50% to 100% (or more) over the next year.

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These are some of this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls.

Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA) cut to Underperform at Bernstein.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) has taken three analyst downgrades this morning, and one boutique upgrade (FULL NOTE).

Fusion-io Inc. (NYSE: FIO) is down handily after earnings but was raised to Buy from Hold at Lazard. J.P. Morgan cut the rating to Neutral from Overweight and Credit Suisse cut the rating to Neutral from Outperform.

Hess Corp. (NYSE: HES) cut to Neutral at UBS and cut to Hold at Soc-Gen.

JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) raised to Buy at Needham.

Kimberly-Clark Corp. (NYSE: KMB) reiterated Buy and raised target by $6 to $98 at Argus.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) reiterated Buy and raised target price to $83 at Canaccord Genuity.

Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse; S&P Equity Research cut RIM to Sell late Wednesday afternoon after the BB10 release.

Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) cut to Underperform at Bernstein and cut to Neutral at Baird.

Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) cut to Underweight at Barclays.

Smithfield Foods Inc. (NYSE: SFD) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) reiterated Buy and raised target by $8 to $100 at Argus.

Deutsche Bank has raised its targets and estimates on many health care facility and hospital stocks around Obamacare now.

Well-known analyst Dick Bove is at a new firm and he has called this week for 30% upside in the major bank stocks.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (CMA, FB, FIO, HES, JDSU, KMB, LOGI, QCOM, RIMM, RF, STX, SFD, UTX) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning following an announcement from Germany that its economy had contracted by 0.5% in the fourth quarter (more coverage here). U.S. data was released on producer prices and retail sales along with the Empire State manufacturing index (more coverage here). In Asia, investors are waiting for more data from China due out later this week, and the Japanese yen weakened by nearly a full percent against the dollar before coming back following comments that the yen is fundamentally in line with expectations. Pre-market earnings results didn’t bolster the opening either.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.35% today, now at 79.763. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.9% at 655.19, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil closed down 0.9% today, at $93.28 a barrel. Brent crude trades down about 1.4% at $110.32 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.1% today at about $3.44 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.9% today at $1,683.90 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 27 points to 13,534.43 (0.20%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 7 points (-0.22%) to 3,110.78, and the S&P 500 rose 0.11% or nearly 2 points to 1,472.34.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) cut to ‘underweight’ at J.P. Morgan; Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $50 at Argus; Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) cut to ‘neutral’ at boutique firm Monnes Crespi Hardt; ARM Holdings plc (NASDAQ: ARMH) cut to ‘equal weight’ at Morgan Stanley; and Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) cut to ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Consolidated Edison Inc. (NYSE: ED) is down 0.8% at $55.28; Forest Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: FRX) is up 0.5% at $37.77 (more coverage here); and Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) is down 0.7% at $40.76 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (NYSE: BK), Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN), and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Express Inc. (NYSE: EXPR) is up 23.5% today at $17.37. The specialty retail raised its fourth quarter and full fiscal year forecasts this morning well above earlier estimates.

Majesco Entertainment Co. (NASDAQ: COOL) is down 29.7% at $0.74 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.67 earlier today. The video game maker posted dismal quarterly results last night and guided for more to come.

Big Five Sporting Goods Corp. (NASDAQ: BGFV)) is up 11.8% at $14.57 after posting a new 52-week high of $14.74 earlier today. The sporting goods retailer posted very good fourth quarter and fiscal year results and boosted earnings projections for both.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota, and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

• 7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
• 8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
• 9:00 a.m. – Treasury International Capital (TIC) data
• 9:15 a.m. – Industrial production
• 10:00 a.m. – Housing market index
• 10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
• 2:00 p.m. – Federal Reserve Beige Book

The post 24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — January 15, 2013: Markets Open Lower, Eke Out Mixed Close (AXP, GMCR, DELL, ARMH, LOGI, ED, FRX, LEN, BK, CMA, JPM, WEN, USB, EXPR, COOL, BGFV) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen so far this Tuesday. There is a larger concentration around biotech and emerging pharma this morning, but that is coincidental.

AFLAC Inc. (NYSE: AFL) cut to Neutral at Stern Agee.

American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) cut to Underweight at J.P. Morgan.

Apollo Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: AINV) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

ARM Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: ARMH) cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) cut to Neutral at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Celgene Corp. (NASDAQ: CELG) raised to Buy at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Credit Suisse Group (NYSE: CS) raised to Outperform at BNP-Paribas.

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) cut to Neutral at boutique firm Monnes Crespi Hardt.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) raised to Buy with $50 target at Argus.

Infosys Ltd. (NYSE: INFY) raised to Buy at UBS.

Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE: LYG) raised to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

Read also: 12 Stocks Expected to Rise 50% to 100% in 2013

Mellanox Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: MLNX) raised to Buy at UBS.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR) started as Buy at Lazard.

PDL BioPharma Inc. (NASDAQ: PDLI) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Pharmacyclics Inc. (NASDAQ: PCYC) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Read also: The Best Biotech Stocks for 2013

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) cut to Hold at Jefferies.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (NYSE: RBS) raised to Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

US Airways Group Inc. (NYSE: LCC) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX) cut to Neutral at Lazard.

ViroPharma Inc. (NASDAQ: VPHM) raised to Buy at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Weatherford International Ltd. (NYSE: WFT) maintained Underperform and named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

With shares of Apple fighting to hold $500, here is how much dead air exists in the stock if the price really starts to break under $500.

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AFL, AXP, AINV, ARMH, BIIB, CELG, CS, DELL, GMCR, INFY, LOGI, LYG, MLNX, NKTR, PDLI, PCYC, REGN, RBS, UAL, LCC, VRTX, VPHM, WFT) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Google TV is set to get content from the Google Play store, including movies, TV shows and music, a big step in Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) efforts to become a media behemoth. Content will start rolling out on its smart TV platform today and continue over the coming weeks.

Users can buy or rent content directly through Google Play on their TVs. Any existing purchases made through other platforms will be imported when users connect their Google accounts. Users can also find titles through a TV & Movies app, which provides recommendations for shows and movies available on live TV, as well as other apps such as those from Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Google Play.

“Google Play gives you one place to find, enjoy and share your favorite entertainment with millions of songs and thousands of movies and TV shows for sale, and adds to the millions of entertainment options available for you on Google TV,” the company said.

Google TV launched in 2010 as a service co-developed by Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC), Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) and Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI). The service spread beyond the United States in June, starting with the United Kingdom, followed by Canada, Australia, France and elsewhere.

These features have long been available on Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) Apple TV. And Amazon Instant Prime recently brought video purchases and rentals to the devices on which it is available.

The post Google Play Content Comes to Google TV appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls this Friday.

Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) Reiterated Buy with a target price of $55 at Argus.

Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited (NYSE: AEM) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Air Products & Chemicals Inc. (NYSE: APD) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Alcatel-Lucent SA (NYSE: ALU) Maintained Underperform and cut estimates at Jefferies.

Allscripts Healthcare (NASDAQ: MDRX) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse; Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML; Raised to Buy at Nomura; Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs; Maintained Hold but raised target to $230 at Canaccord Genuity.

Applied Micro Circuits Corp. (NASDAQ: AMCC) Cut to Hold at Wunderlich.

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) Maintained Neutral but target cut at Credit Suisse.

CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE: CBG) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Constant Contact (NASDAQ: CTCT) Cut to Neutral at Janney; Cut to Market Perform William Blair.

Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ: DECK) Cut to Hold at Jefferies; Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $48 from $40 at Argus.

Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) Raised to Outperform at BNP Paribas.

MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS) Cut to Hold at Argus; Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank; Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $94 from $88 at Argus.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.

SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.

Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Zynga, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) Raised to Neutral at BofA/ML; Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan; Maintained Hold but cut target to $13 from $15 at Canaccord Genuity.

AAR Corporation (NYSE: AIR) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox.  We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AET, AEM, APD, ALU, MDRX, AMZN, AMCC, BIDU, CBG, CTCT, DECK, EBAY, LOGI, PCS, PM, REGN, SNDK, STX, WDC, ZNGA) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

There are many stocks on the move this morning and most are due to the endless reports of earnings.  This Thursday morning’s top pre-market winners and losers are the following:

Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) is down 5.5% this morning at $36.60 on over 100,000 shares.  The media and content accelerator beat earnings estimates even though earnings were down 15%.  Despite a revenue gain, the company announced that its CEO would step down from the company by the end of 2013.

Cirrus Logic, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) rose 11% ahead of the close to $23.09 today, but shares are up another 8% or so on over 500,000 shares since the market closed after reporting revenues and earnings ahead of estimates.  This will mark a 52-week high.

Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) beat earnings and raised guidance; the stock was up 6.5% last night and shares are now up 8.3% at $23.09 on almost 50,000 shares.

Crocs, Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX) had a 32% earnings gain is being trumped with an outlook that is not as robust as investors were hoping.  Shares were down over 8% last night but the stock is down only about 4.5% at $21.04 this morning.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) is trading up almost 8% at $16.20 and we have seen almost 500,000 shares trade hands.  There is a rumor of a buyout or of some sort of deal involving the company but details are not that clear as of yet.

Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX) won on an earnings gain yet again and shares were up 7.6% last night; now shares are up 8.5% at $162.21 and that is a new 52-week high above $161.56 if it holds.

Heartware International, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTWR) is up over 15% at $80.10 on more than 100,000 shares; the company received a favorable FDA Advisory Committee vote for its Ventricular Assist System to bridge  transplant for patients with end-stage heart failure.

H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE: HRB) claimed a record year in total tax clients the company is shedding some 350 jobs and is shutting some 250 stores in order to save money.  Shares were down over 10% last night and are now down 13.9% at $14.41 pre-market.

Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) reported earnings, but this is up because of a change made in its executive management in what investors will hope is a solid turnaround.  Shares are up over 13% at $8.85 in thin pre-market trading.

Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) issued guidance that appears to be above expectations and shares are continuing their surge.  This is up almost 13% on almost 200,000 shares pre-market.

Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE: SKX) is up 16% at $17.34 in thin pre-market trading despite a huge drop in sales and despite a loss as the cleaning out of inventory and restructuring is taking hold with pairs sold on the rise.

Stamps.com Inc. (NASDAQ: STMP) is up 11.3% at $31.50 in thin volume pre-market after it grew handily:  27% in its core PC postage revenues and up 41% in non-GAAP earnings per share.

TriQuint Semiconductor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TQNT) rose over 7% yesterday as an Apple-winner, but shares are down huge as guidance fell short of estimates.  Maybe Apple drove too hard of a bargain.  The drop was over 13% last night and the drop this morning is 14.6% at $4.71 on over 350,000 shares.

Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) showed a net income drop but its outlook for the current quarter is signaling improvements are on the way.  Shares were up over 7% last night and that is the same today with a gain of 7.36% to $36.85 on more than 50,000 shares in the pre-market.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Active Trader Alerts (AKAM, CRUS, CTXS, CROX, EA, EQIX, HTWR, HRB, LOGI, NUAN, SKX, STMP, TQNT, XLNX) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Thursday.

Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (NYSE: ALU) Maintained Sell with $2.00 target at S&P.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) Started as Buy at ThinkEquity.

Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) Cut to Hold at Argus.

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) Raised to Neutral at BNP Paribas.

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) Cut to Neutral at Baird.

Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: CY) Raised to Buy at Lazard (late Wednesday call).

Delek US Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DK) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse; named as value stock of the day at Zacks.

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) Started as Buy at ThinkEquity.

Express Scripts Inc. (NASDAQ: ESRX) Reiterated Buy and raised target from $65 to $67 at BofA/ML.

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Started as Buy at ThinkEquity.

HollyFrontier Corporation (NYSE: HFC) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Janus Capital Group, Inc. (NYSE: JNS) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.

Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) Reiterated Buy and raised target from $60 to $65 at BofA/ML.

Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) Started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) Cut to Neutral at Baird.

The Washington Post Co. (NYSE: WPO) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) Started as Hold at ThinkEquity.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox.  We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALU, AMZN, APOL, MT, T, CY, DK, EBAY, ESRX, GOOG, HFC, JNS, LVS, LOGI, JWN, POT, VZ, WPO, WFM, YHOO) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street brokerage and research firms this Tuesday morning.

Beazer Homes USA, Inc. (NYSE: BZH) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP) Started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP) Raised to Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: LLTC) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE: MTH) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) Raised to Sector Outperform at CIBC.
Ryland Group Inc. (NYSE: RYL) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Steel Dynamics Inc. (NASDAQ: STLD) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE: SF) Raised to Buy with $37 target at Goldman Sachs.
Tesla Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) Raised to Buy at Wunderlich.
U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) Raised to Positive at Susquehanna.

If you enjoyed the top analyst calls, you can sign up in the box below to join our morning email list to receive news directly in your inbox each morning. We include major analyst upgrades and downgrades, IPO and M&A news, special situation developments, observations on Warren Buffett and key market gurus, as well as special exclusive feature stories.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BZH, BHP, CCL, FDX, GGP, INTC, LLTC, LOGI, MTH, PNRA, POT, RYL, STLD, SF, TSLA, USB, WYNN) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Have you been hit or almost been hit by a car driver talking on their cellphone?  Thousands of Americans have died as a result of phone-use related accidents.  Thousands more have been injured.  If you enjoy bicycling and use your bike often in cities, chances are high that you would like to be able to rip cellphones out of drivers’ hands or manually insert such devices into parts of those drivers.  Many states, cities, and counties have bans or have regulations on acceptable use of cellphones and devices and the news today may mark the long beginning of the end for cellphone abuse by drivers.

The National Transportation Safety Board, usually referred to as the NTSB in public, is announcing a major safety recommendation related to “driver distractions caused by driver use of personal electronic devices.”   The NTSB Fact Sheet notes, “The NTSB has called on the 50 states and the District of Columbia to ban the nonemergency use of PEDs (other than those designed to support the driving task) for all drivers.”

Frankly, the new recommended ban has little chance of success in the current form, even if parts of this should proceed.  A call to ban all electronic devices in vehicles regardless of how they are used (except in cases of emergencies or integrated into the transportation needs) will not garner much public support as it is somewhat like stretching the limits of drunk driving blood levels all the way out to a new attempt of prohibition.

Still, this NTSB recommendation may be the start of a larger move to keep cellphones from being abused by drivers in many locations where no regulations exist.  Drivers who text often cross 50 feet to 50 yards of pavement in a shorter period of time than it takes to type in “lol” or even “driving.”  By the way, calling your friends to gossip about things or to see what is up for the night or weekend are not exactly ’emergencies’ under this plan.

There could also be rules for teenagers that are different from adults.  Many cities already have curfews for minors and technically minors are not allowed the same liberties and rights as adults who have a bit more life experience under their belts.

You can expect an outright assault from the phone makers and headset makers, the wireless carriers, the tower operators, and even the communication infrastructure equipment to fight this recommendation if it were to gather any momentum. Also, keep in mind that the NTSB has zero power to enforce or even to propose any such bill to move into law.  All it can do is to make recommendations for safety regarding transportation activities.

Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) is one headset maker that would severely if there was a nationwide ban on holding your cellphone but still allowed drivers to use cellphones if they have wireless or wired headsets for their mobile phones.  Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), and Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S) would all fight a total ban on cellphone use under any circumstances other than emergency use.

American Tower Corporation (NYSE: AMT) and Crown Castle International Corporation (NYSE: CCI) have spent billions of dollars putting in cellphone towers around the nation, including the highways, to make it so that drivers can stay connected on their cellphones whether those drivers need to or not.

The market does not consider this “recommendation” a serious threat. Not yet.  Frankly, for someone who does support a ban of texting and in-hand use of cellphones while driving, today’s recommendation by the NTSB is a disappointment.  The proposal is too broad and sweeping for the public to support it. If this seemed to be a true threat then these stocks would have traded lower by a significant amount.  Just do not be surprised when some legislator in Washington D.C. decides to take this cause up next year.

The NTSB pre-conference fact sheet is here.

JON C. OGG

The post NTSB Recommends Ban On Driver Phone & Device Use (VZ, T, S, LOGI, AMT, CCI) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The biggest problem with the cable companies’ set top boxes is the nearly impenetrable user interface. The new Xbox Live software completely changes that, replacing the hierarchical menus with a graphical interface that can accept voice, touch, and motion commands as well as commands from a smartphone or other handheld device. The idea is to make the TV interface as intuitive and easy-to-use as a smartphone.

Apple’s latest Apple TV offering lets users stream content from the iPhone to a TV set through its AirPlay feature. Google is working with Samsung Electronics (OTC: SSNLF) to integrate Google TV directly into a TV set. Users will still need a cable TV subscription to gain access to cable programming through the Xbox or other TV device.

One interesting thing about all this is that Microsoft, Apple, and Google are very likely to take over the distribution of content from cable companies like Comcast and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ). Not having to design, build, and market a set top box with a modern interface is not a bad thing for the cable guys, who will still make money by requiring users to pay for the cable subscription. Customers, of course, will very likely have to pay a (modest) fee to Microsoft, Apple, or Google for the privilege of connecting to the TV through another device. Xbox Live, for example, requires a $5/month fee for its premium service which allows users to control the TV.

Another possibility is that the TV control software will be paid for by advertising. Xbox Live does include advertising, and although Google has not revealed what it plans to do with its software, the company could choose to offer the TV software on an ad-supported basis.

A second interesting thing about Microsoft’s announcement is that this is one area in which Microsoft could actually be leading both Apple and Google. The Xbox Live interface is consistent with the Windows Phone 8 interface and will be the same as the user interface on Windows 8 which is due in the second half of next year. Apple was first to integrate handheld smartphones and tablets with a TV, but the Microsoft offering is far more mature than Apple’s offering. Google got sidetracked on a failed try with Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI), but its TV deal with Samsung could change things around because Samsung also sells more Android-based phones than any other company. Integrating Android with a TV is natural extension, but Google and Samsung are getting a bit of a late start.

The Xbox Live announcement could usher in the next big thing or it could just be another swing and miss at the integration of computing devices and TV sets. This time does look like it will be different.

Paul Ausick

The post Xbox Live Challenging Cable Supremacy? (MSFT, AAPL, GOOG, CMCSA, TWC, VZ, CVC, SSNLF, LOGI) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls.

Advance Auto Parts. Inc. (NYSE: AAP) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) added to Strong Sell List at Zacks.
Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Carbonite, Inc. (NASDAQ: CARB) Reiterated Buy with $16 target at Canaccord Genuity.
Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank; Raised to Buy at Citigroup; Target raised to $26 from $25 at Credit Suisse.
Computer Sciences Corporation (NYSE: CSC) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Dean Foods Company (NYSE: DF) Cut to Sell at S&P Capital IQ (late-Wednesday); Maintained Buy at Bof A/ML.
Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Hospira, Inc. (NYSE: HSP) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Kraft Foods Inc. (NYSE: KFT) Reiterated Buy with $40 target at Argus.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Raised to Hold at S&P Capital IQ (late-Wednesday).
Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) maintained Hold with $7.50 target at Canaccord Genuity.
PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Spreadtrum Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: SPRD) Reiterated Buy and raised estimates at Canaccord Genuity.
SurModics Inc. (NASDAQ: SRDX) named as Aggressive Growth at Zacks.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: VRTX) Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AAP, AMZN, BUD, CARB, CSCO, CSC, DF, EPD, HSP, KFT, LOGI, NOK, PCG, SD, SPRD, SRDX, VRTX) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls.

Alcatel-Lucent SA (NYSE: ALU) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
ARM Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: ARMH) Started as Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Barclays PLC (NYSE: BCS) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Started as Buy at MKM Partners.
Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE: C) Raised to Outperform with $48 target at Credit Suisse.
Human Genome Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSI) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE: LAD) named as value stock of the day at Zacks.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Strong Sell at S&P (late-Monday call).
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
Questar Corporation (NYSE: STR) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALU, ARMH, AVP, BCS, CSCO, C, HGSI, LAD, LOGI, NVDA, STR) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Each morning we review our top upgrades, downgrades and initiations from Wall St. research notes. We then look back over these at the end of the week to more closely review calls that highlight underlying catalysts or developments that go far beyond just a one-day impact. Many calls turn out to offer keen insight, but some get a failing grade.

This last week’s top analyst calls of the week were in the following: Carbonite Inc. (NASDAQ: CARB); Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW); Dollar General Corporation (NYSE: DG); Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC); Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI); Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU); MAKO Surgical Corp. (NASDAQ: MAKO); McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD); Molycorp Inc. (NYSE: MCP); Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX); National Bank of Greece SA (NYSE: NBG); Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P); Renren Inc. (NYSE: RENN); Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO); Yandex NV (NASDAQ: YNDX); Youku.com Inc. (NYSE: YOKU); Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS); Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN); Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC); and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC).

Carbonite (NASDAQ: CARB) was one of the most mispriced IPOs for 2011, but to the downside by our take due to poor market conditions. The cloud storage player saw its quiet period end and the firms were mostly positive on the stock:

• Started as Buy with a $16 target at Canaccord Genuity;
• Started as Outperform with a $17 target at Oppenheimer;
• Started as Outperform at William Blair;
• Started as Overweight at JP Morgan;
• Started as Buy with a $16 target at BofA/ML.

Corning (NYSE: GLW) is truly a tech value stock. Unfortunately, it is going to have a crummy Christmas in TVs and monitors unless can be massively offset and overcome by smartphones. The company already talked down its numbers a week or so earlier. On Friday it was named as the dubious Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Dollar General (NYSE: DG) may have come closer to being fully valued, if Deutsche Bank is correct. The king of dollar stores was started as Hold with a $38 price target. What is interesting is that this secular winner in hard times hit a new high of $36.71 on Friday and the consensus price target is $39.50. We have this as a secular winner and it is no accident that Warren Buffett’s new portfolio manager has bought shares. Still, at some point we can only say “Buy on pullbacks due to valuation.” We are not there yet, but Deutsche Bank thinks we are close.

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) was raised to Buy with a $27 price target at Bank of America Merrill Lynch this last Thursday. What is amazing about this call is that it is coming at a time when so many are calling for a slowdown. Perhaps the “September is the month to buy tech” will work this year too.

Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) warned this week and one research report could have saved investors piles and piles of cash if they followed the call. The company warned on earnings and sales mid-week on peripheral sales. On Tuesday, a day before the warning, Logitech was downgraded to the dubious Sell rating by Goldman Sachs. Shares were flirting with $9.00 all day with the downgrade but this one closed out the week at $7.75. Goldman Sachs could have saved investors almost 15% here on this call. This was one of the best of this week’s Top Analyst Calls, even if it was a negative call.

Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ: LULU) is no longer on a runaway bull drive, and the yoga and fitness leader in apparel has been on hold since its last earnings report. This last Thursday it was initiated in coverage by Argus with a Buy rating and with $75 target. What is interesting is that the consensus target is just over $56.50 and the current price is $55.77. That is a street-high price target objective.

MAKO Surgical (NASDAQ: MAKO) was just shown to be one of our Top 7 Performing Stocks of 2011 but one key firm believes that it has rallied enough. It is above the consensus price target anyhow. The MAKO shark was removed from the prized Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs on Thursday and this took shares down from roughly $39.00 to $35.25 on Friday.

McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) had been one incredible stock, hitting new highs before its most recent store sale trends. Still, it raised its dividend by 15% as an overlooked dividend hiker this week. Mickey Dee’s was raised to Strong Buy at S&P Equity Research on Thursday. Maybe there is still upside after all? After a 1.6% gain to $87.37, the 52-week range is $72.14 to $91.22 and the consensus price target is just north of $97.50.

Molycorp (NYSE: MCP) was given the heave-ho this week after losing a backer. JP Morgan downgraded the rare earth metals leader to Neutral from Overweight on Tuesday based upon lower rare earth prices. Shares were at $53.01 on Monday and shares fell each day this week to close at $35.93 on Friday. Ouch.

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is bruised, battered and humiliated. We still wonder if a near-term bottom has been seen in this media player. It can still be acquired in a takeunder too. Several analysts opined this week as it was raised to Neutral from Sell at UBS and Wedbush went ahead and raised it to Overweight from Underweight as well. Still, Janney Capital remains very negative and has a fair value of $102 on the stock. At $129.36, this was a $300 stock as recently as July.

National Bank of Greece (NYSE: NBG) took it on the chin yet again on Friday after Moody’s issued a “surprise” debt rating downgrade when it cut seven other Greek banks … like anyone knew there still seven others left. How much of a surprise is this call? About as surprising as the next downgrade.

Pandora Media (NYSE: P) is one of our top mispriced IPOs of 2011, but business is business. On Friday, this rose almost 7% to $10.75 after it was raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley, even though its price target was cut to $16 from $19 in the call.

Renren (NYSE: RENN) is another post-IPO we can’t stand and we called it one of the greatest mispriced IPOs of 2011. Apparently we are not alone. “The Face%$#& of China” was initiated as Underperform at Macquarie with a $5.25 price target on Monday. Despite nearly a 5% gain on Friday, its price of $5.27 compares to a post-IPO range of $4.96 to $24.00. On Friday its Sell rating was removed by Maxim Group, but it only was given a Hold rating.

Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) is getting closer to and closer to either being acquired or to having its value broken out of the company. Stifel Nicolaus gave it an 80% chance or so, and started coverage with a Buy rating and an $18 target on Thursday. Shares rose over 5% on Friday to $14.71 ad the 52-week range is $11.09 to $18.84.

Yandex (NASDAQ: YNDX) had a rough week and shares are close to a post-IPO low at $25.54. On Wednesday the Russian internet search provider was initiated with a Buy rating with a $40 target at Jefferies.

Youku.com (NYSE: YOKU) had such a recovery you would not have believed it without seeing it. On Friday this one was raised to Positive at Susquehanna. Shares rose more than 21% to $17.41, but what was interesting here is that the Chinese online television company had been removed from Goldman Sachs’ Conviction Buy List just the day before. Shares closed even higher than it was when Goldman Sachs made its call. Keep in mind that Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating and has a $50 target. Wait a second … $50??? That is almost 200% upside!

In the world of casinos, maybe the 2012 period is not going to be as large of a disaster as the economic trends are indicating. Both Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN) were started with Buy ratings at Deutsche Bank on Wednesday.

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) probably did not appreciate the debt and credit rating downgrades this week, but the downgrades came regardless. What is interesting is that there was praise for shoring up capital and improving the balance sheet. Sadly, the call was made based upon a lower belief of government support if the you-know-what hits the fan again.

As you can tell, there were many calls affecting stocks. In good markets and in bad markets there are analyst calls which matter.

JON C. OGG

The post 24/7 Wall St. Top Analyst Calls of the Week (CARB, GLW, DG, INTC, LOGI, LULU, MAKO, MCD, MCP, NFLX, NBG, P, RENN, YHOO, YNDX, YOKU, LVS, WYNN, BAC, WFC) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Computer peripherals maker Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) has been having a tough year and its going to get tougher. The company posted an EPS loss of -$0.17 in its first fiscal quarter and yesterday the company clipped its outlook for fiscal year 2012 for the third time this year. There could be a warning here for PC makers like Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) and Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL). Even Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) may not be immune.

Logitech revised its revenue estimate for the fiscal year from $2.5 billion to $2.4 billion. The company estimates operating income will fall from $143 million to $90 million. When Logitech released its first quarter earnings in July, it revised sales down from $2.6 billion to $2.5 billion, and operating income estimates from $185 million to $143 million.

Yesterday’s announcement cuts the original operating income estimate in half, which means that margins are shriveling. In its announcement, the company’s acting president/CEO said the company now has a “thorough understanding of what needs to be fixed. Our strategy remains unchanged.” Ahem. Lowering operating income estimates by half doesn’t indicate that perhaps the strategy is wrong?

On gross margins, Logitech expects full-year margins to rise to 33%, from the dismal 26.1% in the first quarter, more than 7 points lower than in the same period a year ago. The company recently had to cut the price on its Logitech Revue TV box from Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) from $249 to $99, which certainly won’t help margins in the second quarter. Where the margin increase is supposed to come from is not specified.

Even though many of Logitech’s products are aimed at home users, its keyboards and mice also have a place in businesses. The company said in its first quarter Form 10-Q that it believes it can increase sales into enterprises, but if that’s part of their strategy to turn the company around, it could be just more wishful thinking.

As the economy weakens and large PC users like financial services companies announce tens of thousands of layoffs, the outlook for PC and peripheral sales has got to weaken. No company is going to replace PCs for people who are soon to be shown the door. Those companies aren’t going to be replacing keyboards and mice anytime soon either.

Logitech’s falling revenue could be a signal of continued weakness in PC sales or it could be a trailing indicator. Either way, expectations for PC makers probably aren’t going to rise on Logitech’s revised outlook.

And what about Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC)?  Microsoft has already unveiled a planned version of Windows and Intel still ends up in about 4 out of every 5 PCs made.  If peripherals are slow, imagine what a software upgrade cycle push-out could mean for new PC sales as well.

Less than half an hour before markets open Logitech shares are down more than -14%, at $7.47, which would be a new 52-week low if it holds. The current 52-week range is $7.85-$23.29.

Paul Ausick

The post Logitech Forecast, An Ill Omen For PC Makers (LOGI, DELL, HPQ, AAPL, GOOG, INTC, MSFT) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of this Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen having an impact from Wall Street research calls.

Alon USA Energy, Inc. (NYSE: ALJ) is the value stock of the day at Zacks.
Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Carbonite, Inc. (NASDAQ: CARB) Started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity; Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer; Started as Outperform at William Blair; Started as Buy at BofA/ML.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) Started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) Started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (NYSE: JKS) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) Cut to Market Perform at JMP Securities.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE: MCP) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) Raised to Sector Outperform at CIBC.
PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM) Raised to Buy at UBS.
SandRidge Permian Trust (NYSE: PER) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer; Started as Market Weight at Wells Fargo; Started as Outperform at Baird.
SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) Raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.
SM Energy Co. (NYSE: SM) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW) Started as Buy at Merriman (Monday night).
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JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALJ, APA, CARB, CHK, DVN, JKS, LOGI, MRVL, MGM, MCP, MOS, PHM, PER, SAP, SM, TRV, VMW) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Friday morning.

AerCap Holdings N.V. (NYSE: AER) Started as Outperform with $16 target at Credit Suisse.
AirCastle LTD (NYSE: AYR) Started as Neutral with $14 target at Credit Suisse.
Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY) Raised to BUy at S&P Equity Research (late Thursday).
BB&T Corporation (NYSE: BBT) Started as Hold at Citigroup.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE: CMG) Raised to Outperform at Morgan Keegan.
Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) Cut to Market Perform at JMP.
Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) Cut to Neutral at UBS; Cut to Neutral at Baird.
JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) Maintained Buy but cut target to $17 at Argus.
LDK Solar Co., Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) Raised to Equal-Weight at Barclays.
Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) Raised to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies.
Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) Maintained Hold at Argus.
Sina Corporation (NASDAQ: SINA) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Suncor Energy INc. (NYSE: SU) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
Tesoro Corporation (NYSE: TSO) Maintained Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSK) Raised to Outperform at KBW.

You are invited to join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, dividend trends, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AER, AYR, BBY, BBT, CMG, CREE, HPQ, JDSU, LDK, LOGI, LULU, RIMM, SHLD, SINA, SU, TSO, VRSK) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Active traders and day traders have many stocks to choose from this Thursday morning. We are tracking news and  moves in shares of Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM), ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML), Endocyte, Inc. (NASDAQ: ECYT), and Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI).

Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) is down 15.6% premarket to $24.88, below its 52-week range of $28.69-$54.65. FBR capital lowered its price target on the company from $40.00 to $25.00.

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML) is down 4% before market open to $35.77, relative to a 52-week range of $24.63-$45.92.

Endocyte, Inc. (NASDAQ: ECYT) is up more than 5% premarket to $12.90, relative to a 52-week range of $1.17-$3.23. The company announced a public offering of 5.8 million shares.

Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) is down more than 8% before market open to $9.48, relative to a 52-week range of $9.62-$23.29. The company issued Q1 earnings under expectations and disappointing FY12 guidance.

The post Top Active Trader Alert Stocks (AKAM, ASML, ECYT, LOGI) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Active traders and day traders have many stocks to choose from this Friday morning. We are tracking news and  moves in shares of Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Logitech International, Inc. (NASDAQ: LOGI), and Seattle Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGEN).

Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) is up nearly 13% premarket to $597.10, relative to a 52-week range of $447.65-$642.96. The Internet search giant released very impressive earnings and revenue after market close yesterday. Read about it here.

Logitech International, Inc. (NASDAQ: LOGI) is down 2.4% premarket to $9.86, relative to a 52-week range of $10.05-$23.29.

Seattle Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGEN) is down 6.2% to $19, relative to a 52-week range of $11.34-$21.41.

The post Top Active Trader Alert Stocks (GOOG, LOGI, SGEN) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Active traders and day traders have many stocks to choose from this Friday morning.  We are tracking news and moves in shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN), Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI), and Optimer Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTR).

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN) is up 2% premarket on moderate volume to $6.78, relative to a 52-week range of  $5.04- $7.70.

Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) is down 18% premarket to $14.81, within a 52-week range of $13.17-$23.29. The company lowered its FY11 income and sales projections.

Optimer Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTR) is up 8.2% premarket to $12.80, relative to a 52-week range of $7.68-$13.70.

The post Top Active Trader Alert Stocks (HBAN, LOGI, OPTR) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of this Thursday’s key analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Started as Outperform with $410 at Baird (expanded details).
Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) Started as Buy at Collins Stewart.
Capella Education Co. (NASDAQ: CPLA) Cut to Neutral at Baird.
Corinthian Colleges Inc. (NASDAQ: COCO) Cut to Sell at UBS.
Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ: LOPE) Cut to Neutral at Baird.
Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) Started as Neutral at Collins Stewart.
Monolithic Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: MPWR) Cut to Neutral at Gleacher & Company.
Portugal Telecom SGPS SA (NYSE: PT) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Statoil ASA (NYSE: STO) Cut to Hold at Societe Generale.
Syniverse Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SVR) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.

You can join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about dividend trends, analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AAPL, BSX, CPLA, COCO, LOPE, LOGI, MDT, MPWR, PT, PHM, STO, SVR) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Stocks moving up in the pre-market:

Netlist (NASDAQ: NLST), Jazz Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: JAZZ), Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ: HERO), Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR), Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), and DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS)

Moving down:CNB Financial NASDAQ: CCNE), Anaren (NASDAQ: ANEN), and School Specialty (NASDAQ: SCHS).

Most active: Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI), ARM Holdings (NASDAQ: ARMH), and THQ Inc (NASDAQ: THQI)

Douglas A. McIntyre

The post Pre-Market Movers (NLST)(JAZZ)(DRYS)(CCNE)(LOGI) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this morning:

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) Raised to Buy at ING.
BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE: BLK) Started as Buy at Stern Agee.
Blue Coat Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: BCSI) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) Started as Conviction Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) Raised to Hold at RBS.
National Bank of Greece SA (NYSE: NBG) Cut to Market Perform at KBW.
NutriSystem Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRI) Raised to Buy at Lazard.
Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Sapient Corp. (NASDAQ: SAPE) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Sonoco Products Co. (NYSE: SON) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Stryker Corporation (NYSE: SYK) Raised to Outperform at Bernstein.

You can join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about dividend trends, analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

The post Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (MT, BLK, BCSI, HAS, LOGI, NBG, NTRI, CRM, SAPE, SON, SYK) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The rumor that US Air (NYSE:LCC) and American (NYSE:AMR) may merge is not so far-fetched today, or that Southwest (NYSE:LUV) might take over JetBlue (NASDAQ:JBLU).

British Air and Iberia, the flag carriers of the two nations whose fleets met at The Battle of Trafalgar, will merge, creating one of the world’s largest airlines. BA shareholders will control 55% of the new company which will have a market value of $7 billion and total sales of nearly $20 billion. It is noteworthy that just earlier this week, BA said it would fire  4,900 people because of a $485 million loss in the six months that ended on September 30.

Airlines have begun to despair that the industry faces another harsh year in 2010. There is little evidence that business or personal fliers are likely to return to the air. Oil prices hover near $80 and the smallest hurricane, a political incident in a crude-exporting nation, or news of increased demand from China could push that figure toward $90 overnight.

Unemployment in most of the wealthiest countries, which account for a disproportionate amount of global air travel,  is still high. Most consumers have become remarkably tight with money. Businesses have found alternatives to traveling like video conferencing which may be why Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) and Logitech (NASDAQ:LOGI) are so keen to get deeply into that business.

US carriers are plagued by the same problems that Iberia and BA are. American and Delta (NYSE:DAL) are each trying to make investments in Japan Air to bolster their potential traffic is Asia. Most domestic carriers have been able to strengthen their balance sheets, but that has only bought them time. It is still nearly impossible to consistently make money in the US air travel market under current economic conditions.

Delta bought Northwest late last year as the industry dropped into one of its most difficult periods since the 9/11 attacks kept people away from air travel for months. American and United (NASDAQ:UAUA) are viewed at the two US carriers most likely to face continuing financial problems. There has been talk about America merging with US Air for several weeks. American’s shares have dropped 25% during the last month.

Two things could  force a business combination among two US carriers quickly. The first would be a sharp and persistent increase in the price of oil. The second would be any significant signal that the very modest economic recovery has begun to reverse itself.

Two US carriers will announced a merger before the end of the first quarter of next year.

Douglas A. McIntyre

The post British Air And Iberia: Airlines Return To The Center Of M&A Stage appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are the top ten analyst upgrades and downgrades we have seen from Wall Street this Thursday morning:

AthenaHealth (ATHN) Started as Buy at Maxim.
Capstead Mortgage (CMO) Cut to Market Perform at KBW.
Changyou.com (CYOU) Cut to Neutral at Susquehanna.
Citrix Systems (CTXS) Cut to Hold at Needham.
eBay (EBAY) Raised to Outperform at RBC.
Logitech (LOGI) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Network Appliance (NTAP) Raised to Overweight at Piper Jaffray.
Sanmina-SCI (SANM) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Shanda Interactive (SNDA) Cut to Negative at Susquehanna.
VMware (VMW) Raised to Buy at Needham.

Jon C. Ogg
July 23, 2009

The post Top 10 Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ATHN, CMO, CYOU, CTXS, EBAY, LOGI, NTAP, SANM, SNDA, VMW) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top pre-market analyst downgrades we have seen this Thursday morning with more than two hours until the market opens:

• Air Products (APD) Cut to Hold at KeyBanc.
• Alcoa (AA) Cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Century Aluminum (CENX) Cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Cerner (CERN) Cut to Hold at Jefferies; Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
• Dynamic Materials (BOOM) Cut to Hold at KeyBanc.
• Eclipsys (ECLP) Cut to Underperform at Jefferies.
• El Paso Electric (EE) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
• Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) Cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley; Cut to Underperform at FBR.
• Kellogg (K) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
• Logitech (LOGI) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
• Wyeth (WYE) Cut to Neutral at UBS.

Jon C. Ogg
January 22, 2009

The post Top Pre-Market Analyst Downgrades (APD, AA, CENX, CERN, BOOM, ECLP, EE, FCX, K, LOGI, WYE) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Shares of Logitech International (NASDAQ: LOGI) are trading lower after the company withdrew its guidance.  What is interesting is that the stock of this Swiss computer and gaming peripheral leader is holding up far better than many may have guessed.  There are reasons behind at least some of the relative stability despite the severity of the news.

For starters, it did something worse than just lowering guidance.  It withdrew all of its targets.  It gave no new targets and only saidit would update its business conditions in two weeks during its fiscalthird-quarter review.  Thomson Reuters (First Call) pegs estimates at $0.53 EPS on $742 million in revenue for the current quarter. Estimates for the fiscal year ended in March 2009 are$1.42 EPS and $2.50 billion in revenue.

The CEO noted several items which many others have echoed:

• "retail environment deteriorated significantly…"
• "varying degrees of weakness across all geographies and channels…"
• "customers reduced inventory levels…"
• "we expect the economic environment to worsen in the coming months…"
• "what is likely to be an extended downturn.”

The company is also slashing its salaried workforce by 15% and willrecognize those charges in the following quarter.  The company has about 9,400 employees.  Logitech is thelargest pure-play stock for computer peripherals and it is active ingaming peripherals.  It requires no genius to realize that both sectorsare off.  Gaming sales are soft, and you no longer have to buy newperipherals if you upgrade your PC.  In fact, many of these cheapernotebooks and netbooks may not need any peripherals.  So why are shares only down 9% at $14.65 today? 

The company’s market cap is currently around $2.6 billion.  Its 52-weektrading range holds little relevance today, but it is $11.10 to$34.38.  Shares had lost roughly two-thirds of their value due to theobvious weak stock market and declining consumer spending. 

In thepast, we have even noted this company could be a potentialacquisition for Microsoft.  Imagine all the subliminal advertising if you suddenly saw "Microsoft" written on all your peripheralsrather than "Logitech."  Microsoft already does sell some branded peripherals.  Sure, that is probably not a smart use of money rightnow in today’s market where the value of ALL advertising is depressed.But history dictates that weakness in all sectors is eventuallyreplaced by a rapid expansion off of lows.

The P/E trading under 10.0 and other current valuation metrics are nowthrown out the door.  In fact, the expected growth will now be thrownout the door and you should expect that most of the analysts whichcover the stock are already trying to lower their estimates.

Traders and investors appear to have been accumulating positionsafter the sell-off and during the recent recovery.  It is doubtful thattoday’s prices mark any extreme bottom.  In fact, any additional marketweakness will now only allow traders to sell their weaker-news stocks.But there is still a 30%+ cushion in today’s prices before this onereaches any new 52-week lows.

Logitech has virtually no long-term debt.  It has more than $450 million incash.  It also just signaled that it is going to be running much leaneroperations.  It also has significant shelf presence in PC and consumer electronics retailers, as well as most online stores.

It might be hard to call this a value stock and it might be hard todraw any steady lines in the sand.  But it would seem that traders andlong-term investors might have some ambition that all those peripheralswill need to be replaced through time.  If that is the case, thenLogitech’s woes won’t last forever.

Jon C. Ogg
January 6, 2009

The post Logitech Slowly Becoming A Bargain (LOGI) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are some of the top analyst calls we are seeing in pre-market trading this Friday morning:

• Avanex (AVNXD) Cut to Neutral at Merriman Curhan Ford.
• Burger King (BKC) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
• Las Vegas Sands (LVS) Cut to Sell at B of A.
• Logitech (LOGI) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
• Pacific Sunwear (PSUN) Cut to Neutral at Baird; Cut to Market Perform at FBR.
• Physicians Formula (FACE) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• ShorTel (SHOR) Cut to Equal Weight at Lehman.
• Symmetry Medical, Inc. (SMA) Cut to Underperform at Wachovia.
• Talbots (TLB) Cut to Market Perform at FBR.

Jon C. Ogg
August 22, 2008

The post Top Pre-Market Analyst Downgrades (AVNX, AVNXD, BKC, LVS, LOGI, PSUN, FACE, SHOR, SMA, TLB) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

We routinely look over major changes in short interest from period to period.  While the more frequent twice-monthly reporting is conducted by exchanges, it sometimes gives a little insight into the psyche of traders and trends.  The most important issue to look at is in the larger and more active names that have large positions that grew rapidly in percentage terms.

We screened many different names after the short interest data came out last night from NASDAQ, so we looked for a minimum of 5 million shares short and we looked for those names whose short interest grew by more than 30%.  These are not all of the names, but here is a representation of the screen:

Comapny (Ticker)                              MARCH 14     FEB 29       CHANGE
Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO)          73,069,889   48,631,811    50.25%
Logitech International (LOGI)           8,017,620    5,464,404     46.72%
Micrel, Incorporated (MCRL)             7,719,618    5,242,192     47.26%
PAREXEL International (PRXL)        6,204,152    3,137,862     97.72%
Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN)         14,068,305    9,336,158    50.69%
Staples, Inc. (SPLS)                          20,708,717   15,097,693   37.16%
Sun Microsystems (JAVA)                23,630,955   17,562,322   34.55%
T. Rowe Price Group (TROW)         15,997,024   11,341,287   41.05%
YRC Worldwide, Inc. (YRCW)          22,782,135   16,007,172   42.32%

Jon C. Ogg
March 27, 2008

Jon Ogg produces the Special Situation Investing Newsletter and can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

The post Major March Short Interest Increases (CSCO, LOGI, MCRL, PRXL, PTEN, SPLS, JAVA, TROW, YRCW) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

These are not all of the analyst calls moving stocks this morning, but these are the top ten individual analyst calls that 247WallSt.com is focusing on this morning:

• DuPont (NYSE: DD) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
• Elan (NYSE: ELN) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
• Logitec (NASDAQ: LOGI) started as Buy at Citigroup.
• Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) started as Buy at Jefferies.
• Obagi Medical (NASDAQ: OMPI) raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
• PDL BioPharma (NASDAQ: PDLI) cut to Equal-Weight at Lehman Brothers.
• Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (NASDAQ: RRGB) raised to Overweight at JP Morgan.
• RiskMetrics Group (NYSE: RMG) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse; started as Neutral at Banc of America.
• Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) downgraded to Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Xinhua Financial Media (NASDAQ: XFML) downgraded to Neutral at JP Morgan.

Jon C. Ogg
March 5, 2008

The post Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (DD, ELN, LOGI, MSFT, OMPI, PDLI, RRGB, RMG, WHR, XFML ) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

Shares of Logitech (NASDAQ: LOGI) are trading up over 8% in early Thursday trading.  The maker of keyboards, mouses, PC-cams, microphones, and all other computer peripherals is trading up on market chatter and speculation that Microsoft may want to acquire the company.

While this is a mostly hardware company, this might actually be a good fit for Microsoft. The company is expected to have revenues of $2.39 Billion for its annual March-2008 numbers.  It also trades at 23.4-times fiscal March-2008 earnings if the estimates are accurate, and its currency converted market cap is roughly $6 Billion.  Logitech also just unveiled its new line of peripherals at CES this week.

Many analysts have panned software companies making hardware acquisition efforts.  This one makes sense though when you consider that Microsoft already makes many of its own computer peripherals. If nothing else, it might be a great bit of subliminal marketing with the company name being all over your desktop without you even realizing it.

Shares of Logitech are trading up over 8% at $33.86 and its 52-week trading range is $25.05 to $37.03.

If Logitech doesn’t get acquired by Microsoft, Logitech should consider acquiring Mad Catz Interactive (AMEX: MCZ).  That would lock-up a competitor in the video game peripherals space that has been making some inroads despite its sub-$100 million market capitalization.  With the $500 million or so bump in Logitech’s market cap today, the company could get Mad Catz for free.

Jon C. Ogg
January 10, 2008

The post Microsoft Might Buy Logitech… And It Should (MSFT, LOGI, MCZ) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

The Consumer Electronics Show kicked off last night with a keynote from Bill Gates (supposedly his last) and there are many product announcements being shown from large and small tech companies alike.  Here are some of the key product launch features being shown so far:

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) unveiled its ATI Mobility Radeon 3000 graphics processor for notebooks and its Xilleon panel processor for LCD TV image quality; AMD shares up 1%.

Himax (HIMX) is in a new strategic alliance with 3M (MMM) over ultra-mobile digital projectors; HIMX stock up almost 6%.

Logitech (LOGI) is demo’ing its new sleek line of computer peripherals and entertainment devices.

Mad Catz (MCZ) will have its recently acquired Saitek unit with new Cyborg line including keyboard, mouse, headset, and peripherals.

Microsoft (MSFT) said at "CES" it had 100 million licenses sold of Windows Vista; 17.7 million Xbox 360’s, 10 million Xbox live users; will have new content downloads with Disney, ABC, and more; showcasing new GPS; MSFT shares up 1%.

Pixelworks (PXLW) launched its Keystone Correction Post-processing IC for digital projectors.

RealNetworks’ (RNWK) is partnering with Philips for its Rhapsody player for in-home audio and GoGear portable devices.

Sony (SNE) is debuting a new digital camcorder with triple recording in a hard drive, memory stick, and disk for ultra-compatibility among digital platforms; shares up 3%.

Yahoo! (YHOO) announced a platform neutral mobile ecosystem for mobile web content at CES with a new redesigned Yahoo! mobile launch page; shares up 0.5%.

Please be advised that there will be hundreds of product launches and partnerships announced out of the Consumer Electronics Show this week.  This is only a small snapshot of new devices we saw from various announcements and press releases.

Jon C. Ogg
January 7, 2008

The post Consumer Electronics Show Device Launches (AMD, HIMX, LOGI, MCZ, MSFT, PXLW, RNWK, SNE, YHOO) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..

(AMTD) TD Ameritrade trading up 1% after beating and raising target.
(AVCI) Avici Systems trading up 29% on higher revenue guidance after earnings.
(BAC) $1.28 EPS vs $1.20 estimate.
(CAL) Continental $2.10 vs 1.84 estimate.
(CTXS) Citrix trading up 11% after beating revenues and two upgrades so far.
(EBAY) eBay trading down 1% after beating earnings, but lower listings.
(F) Ford bids due today for Rover and Jaguar units.
(HOG) Harley Davidson $0.14 EPS vs $0.13 estimate.
(IBM) IBM traded up 4% after beating earnings.
(JNPR) Juniper Networks trading up 8% after earnings and upgrade.
(LOGI) Logitech $0.14 EPS vs $0.16e.
(NAFC) Nash Finch $0.70 EPS vs $0.63 estimate.
(MOT) Motorola $0.02 EPS vs $0.00 estimate, but had already lowered.
(SAP) SAP trading up 8% after earnings rose 8% and a gain in market share.
(SCHL) Scholastic Corp. $0.93 EPS vs $1.02 estimate; sees 2008 $2.35-2.85 vs. $2.67 estimate.
(SPWR) SunPower $0.25 EPS vs $0.21e; down from $0.29 last year.
(UNH) UnitedHealth $0.87 vs $0.81 estimate.
(UNP) Union Pacific $1.65 EPS vs $1.62 estimate.
(VMC) Vulcan Materials lowerials lowered guidance.
(WIT) Wipro $0.12 EPS vs $0.12e.
(WMT) Wal-Mart is reportedly interested in acquiring China’s largest retailer Beijing Hualian, although companies have denied this.

Jon C. Ogg
July 19, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers. 

The post Pre-Market Stock News (July 19, 2007) appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..