Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Amazon, Barrick Gold, Boston Scientific, Chipotle, Gap, Gilead, Goldcorp, Workday and More

November 30, 2017 by Jon C. Ogg

Stocks set yet another record on the Dow and S&P, but some top chip and tech names have started finding some cracks after massive gains in 2017. The major indexes (Nasdaq included) were up strong again on Thursday on continued optimism about tax reform. The one trend that has continued to prevail for more than five years now is for investors to buy all the big market sell-offs. Many investors are on the hunt for new investing and trading ideas to generate gains and income ahead.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find at least some of those new investing and trading ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these analyst reports and research notes cover stocks to buy. Other reports cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

Additional color and commentary has been added on most of these daily analyst calls. The consensus analyst price targets mentioned and other valuation metrics are from the Thomson Reuters sell-side research service.

These were the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and other research calls from Thursday, November 30, 2017. Also, don’t forget that this is the last day of the month.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) saw its price target raised to $1,350 from $1,275 at MKM Partners. Amazon is still MKM’s favorite long-term growth story in large cap and mega-cap stocks, noting that the e-commerce business can grow to mid-single-digit operating margins by 2022 and that AWS can keep growing in the double-digits. Amazon shares were down 2.7% at $1,161.27 on Monday, but they were indicated up 0.8% on Thursday. Its 52-week trading range is $736.70 to $1,213.41, and the prior consensus analyst target price is $1,237.09.

Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: GG) was downgraded to Sell from Buy with a $13 price target (versus a $14.03 prior close) at Citigroup. It has a 52-week range of $13.81 to $20.78 and a consensus target price of $18.52.

Boston Scientific Corp. (NYSE: BSX) was down 1.7% at $25.95 on Wednesday but was up 1.5% at $26.35 early on Thursday despite a delay in the heart valve. Barclays lowered its target price to $32 from $33. Wedbush maintained its Neutral rating with a $28 price target, noting that management sounded less confident of finding a near-term solution.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was up 5.6% at $301.99 on Wednesday on news of a new CEO search, but Credit Suisse is maintaining its Neutral stance. The firm weighed in noting that the CEO departure is a good first step in the recovery process, but short term this change (as well as the language in the press release) suggests fundamentals remain weak. Chipotle has a 52-week range of $263.00 to $499.00 and a consensus target price of $316.89.

Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral with a $28 price target (versus a $32.50 close) at Citigroup. Shares were up 4.9% at $32.50 on Wednesday due it being a holiday sales winner, but Gap was down 3.3% at $31.41 on Thursday.

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $94 price target (versus a $73.67 close) at Maxim Group, with the firm noting that Gilead and Kite combined can overcome Yescarta manufacturing challenges for the United States and China. Gilead’s 52-week range is $63.76 to $86.27, and the consensus target price is currently around $85.

Goldcorp Inc. (NYSE: GG) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $16 price target (versus a $12.65 close) at Citigroup. Goldcorp was down 2.9% at $12.65 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range of $11.91 to $17.87.

Workday Inc. (NASDAQ: WDAY) was down over 7% at $106.54 despite an earnings beat, but shares were indicated down another 3% on Thursday at $103.40. Several analysts have trimmed their target prices: Jefferies cut its target to $101 from $106, and Barclays cut its target to $115. That being said, Citigroup raised its downside price target to $85 from $72, and Wedbush raised its target to $106 from $104. Workday’s 52-week range is $65.79 to $116.89.

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Other key analyst calls were seen as follows:

AxoGen Inc. (NASDAQ: AXGN) was started with a Buy rating and assigned a $35 price target (versus a $25.70 close) at Jefferies. The firm feels that Axogen is one of the best growth stories in med-tech and that it is targeting the underserved nerve repair market for a $2.2 billion opportunity.

DENTSPLY International Inc. (NASDAQ: XRAY) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy with a $68 price target (versus a $68.36 close) at H.C. Wainwright.

Eaton Vance Corp. (NYSE: EV) was started as Neutral with a $49 target price at Credit Suisse.

Federated Investors Inc. (NYSE: FII) was started as Neutral with a $25 price target at Credit Suisse.

HCA Healthcare Inc. (NYSE: HCA) was raised to Overweight from Neutral and the price target was raised to $96 from $75 at JPMorgan. The stock was up 2.6% at $80.14 on Wednesday and indicated up 4.4% at $83.70.

Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $5 price target (versus a $3.73 close) at B. Riley. Hecla has a 52-week range of $3.63 to $6.78, and its consensus target price was higher at $5.59 ahead of the call.

Melinta Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: MLNT) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Ladenburg Thalmann. Shares closed up 1.3% at $15.20 on Wednesday and were indicated up 7.2% at $16.30 on Thursday.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: NCLH) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral with a $47 price target (versus a $55.29 close) at Macquarie.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform with a $120 price target (versus a $124.70 close) at Macquarie.

Universal Display Corp. (NASDAQ: OLED) was started as Outperform with a $225 price target (versus a $179.65 close) at Evercore ISI. It was down 3.4% at $179.65 on Wednesday but was indicated up 1.6% at $182.50, but investors should keep in mind that the 52-week range is $53.05 to $192.75 and its consensus analyst target was $165.71.

24/7 Wall St. has started panning through 2018 outlooks from internal and external views, and emerging market investors and growth investors might find that India could be the top market for growth in 2018 and beyond.

Here are four stocks expected to win from the recent surge in natural gas prices.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning will be huge for four companies, and they are not only AMD and NVIDIA.

Wednesday’s top analyst calls included Allergan, Autodesk, Home Depot, Marvell, Qualcomm, UnitedHealth, Walmart and many more.

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