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Top Analyst Downgrades and Cautious Views from Wall Street

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:40:15 +0000

While investors generally see analysts issuing Buy ratings, it is always interesting to see what happens when Wall St. analysts give stocks to sell or when they have very cautious comments about companies. We review many fresh research calls to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks. We are breaking out the negative analyst calls of Wall St. analysts’ stocks to sell, as well as cautious calls. These are this Wednesday’s top analyst downgrades and cautious research notes from Wall St.

Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) was downgraded twice on Thursday: cut to Neutral from Overweight by J.P. Morgan and cut to Perform from Outperform by Oppenheimer.

EBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) was cut to Neutral from Outperform by Macquarie after its earnings report and mixed guidance. Shares are indicated down 3%.

Expeditors International of Washington Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPD) cut to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital Markets.

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) cut to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital Markets.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at a firm called Compass Point, although that $8 price target still stands out above the $7.01 close on Wednesday and above the $7.55 high in the past 52-week period.

Qiagen N.V. (NASDAQ: QGEN) was initiated with a Sell rating at Citigroup.

There is a macro-market call from Citigroup’s global equities team to watch. The firm is telling customers that it is shifting its allocations to Underweight from a Neutral weighting for U.S. equities. This may seem a bit late if you have been watching our coverage on Japanese markets, but Citigroup is now telling customers that it underestimated the impact of policy changes from the Bank of Japan and it is now raising Japanese equities to Neutral from Underweight. This call feels a bit like a “Thanks for nothing” call.

Filed under: Active Trader, Analyst Calls Tagged: APA, EBAY, EXPD, FDX, HBAN, QGEN

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (CTL, CSCO, GRMN, GNRC, GFI, HAIN, HBAN, JCP, KGC, MWW, NTGR, GOLD, RIG, URBN, YNDX)

Jon C. Ogg — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 13:45:15 +0000

These are some of this Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls.

CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) cut to Hold from Buy at Argus, and downgraded by multiple analysts yesterday after lowering dividend.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) reiterated as Buy and raised target to $26 at Argus.

Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN) started as Outperform at William Blair.

Generac Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNRC) cut to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Gold Fields Inc. (NYSE: GFI) cut to Neutral from Buy at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN) reiterated Buy but cut target to $72 from $77 at Argus.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) maintained Underperform with $15 target at Credit Suisse.

Kinross Gold Corp. (NYSE: KGC) raised to Outperform with $11.50 price target at Credit Suisse.

Monster Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: MWW) cut to Neutral at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Netgear Inc. (NASDAQ: NTGR) raised to Buy with $41 target at Stern Agee.

Randgold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) cut to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup.

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) cut to Sell from Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) cut to Market Perform at BMO.

Yandex N.V. (NASDAQ: YNDX) started as Overweight at Barclays.

Credit Suisse is out very positive on four key MLP stocks for investors looking for high dividends and distributions.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: CSCO, CTL, GFI, GNRC, gold, GRMN, HAIN, HBAN, JCP, KGC, MWW, NTGR, RIG, URBN, YNDX

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ALKS, AVT, KMX, CTCT, CME, DK, EXPD, HBAN, MPC, MYL, P, PSX, RCL, SPR, STJ, TRV)

Jon C. Ogg — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 12:14:34 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall St. research calls this Friday.

Alkermes PLC (NASDAQ: ALKS) raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks and started as Buy at Citigroup.

Avnet Inc. (NYSE: AVT) cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Constant Contact Inc. (NASDAQ: CTCT) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse, cut to Market Perform at Raymond James and cut to Neutral at Lazard.

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CME) raised to Outperform at Raymond James.

Delek US Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DK) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Expeditors International of Washington Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPD) raised from Sell all the way up to the Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) raised to Buy at Citigroup.

Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Mylan Inc. (NASDAQ: MYL) raised to Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

Pandora Media, Inc. (NYSE: P) cut to Neutral at HSBC.

Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPR) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse; cut to Neutral at Stern Agee.

St. Jude Medical Inc. (NYSE: STJ) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

The Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE: TRV) named as Value stock of the day at Zacks.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ALKS, AVT, CME, CTCT, DK, EXPD, HBAN, KMX, MPC, MYL, P, PSX, RCL, SPR, STJ, TRV

Thumbs Up on U.S. Banks (CS, WFC, JPM, HBAN)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 11:32:42 +0000

Calling U.S. banks a leveraged play on interest rates supported by declining spreads on investment grade debt, Credit Suisse Group (NYSE: CS) today upgraded its view of U.S. banks. The bank’s analysts believe that U.S. banks will see better returns as asset quality rises and as banks make more loans.

According to a report at MarketWatch, Credit Suisse rates Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) as Neutral and gives J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) and Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) Outperform ratings.

Credit Suisse says U.S. banks will “surprise to the upside.” Compared to European banks, U.S. banks are fully deleveraged, another point in the banks’ favor. The U.S. economy is expected outperform Europe in the near term and corporate balance sheets have improved. Credit Suisse also notes that U.S. leading economic indicators are getting better.

Of the U.S. banks Credit Suisse names, J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo are active in premarket trading this morning. Wells Fargo’s shares are up about 0.5% at $34.85 in a 52-week range of $22.61 to $36.60. Shares of J.P. Morgan are trading down 0.4% at $40.80 in a 52-week range of $27.85 to $46.49.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls, Banking, Banking & Finance Tagged: CS, HBAN, JPM, WFC

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ACHN, ATI, AGN, AEO, BBT, BRCM, SCHW, CLNE, GLW, DOW, DD, GNRC, HBAN, IDIX, LRCX, MANU, MRO, MAT, MON, NTRS, SHW, STI, WM, WPRT)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 12:27:29 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls this Wednesday.

Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) raised to Buy from Underperform with $13 target at BofA/ML.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN) started as Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

The Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

The Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW) started as Sector Perform at RBC.

E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (NYSE: DD) started as Sector Perform at RBC.

Generac Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNRC) started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IDIX) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Manchester United PLC (NYSE: MANU) maintained Outperform but cut target to $17 at Credit Suisse.

Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) cut to Hold at Needham.

Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Northern Trust Corp. (NASDAQ: NTRS) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

The Sherwin-Williams Co. (NYSE: SHW) started as Top Pick at RBC.

SunTrust Banks Inc. (NYSE: STI) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.

Westport Innovations Inc. (NASDAQ: WPRT) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ACHN, AEO, AGN, ATI, BBT, BRCM, CLNE, DD, DOW, GLW, GNRC, HBAN, IDIX, LRCX, MANU, MAT, MON, MRO, NTRS, SCHW, SHW, STI, WM, WPRT

Net Interest Margin To Hurt Regional Bank Earnings To 2013-2014

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 14:08:52 +0000

The low-rate environment is going to continue taking a toll on bank earnings. Credit Suisse has a report this Thursday showing some ongoing caution in the regional banking sector. The firm is maintaining an Outperform rating on six of the fifteen U.S. regional banks covered but the overall low-rate environment is expected to keep taking a toll on bank earnings. The firm expects negative 2013 and 2014 EPS revisions driven by negative net interest margin outlook and guidance. The good side of the equation is that the firm sees strong loan growth and continued credit quality improvement. Following the drop in the 10-year, Credit Suisse reduced its 2014 earnings forecasts by 9% this month based on a long-term net interest margin outlook.

Some of these regional banks were screened for our Safest Banks in America for Depositors and many were close enough that they almost made the list. Two banks did make the list.

The “Neutral ratings with not much commentary were in BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT), Bank of Hawaii (NYSE: BOH), EverBank Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: EVER), Synovus Financial (NYSE: SNV), and TCF Financial (NYSE: TCB).

There were two more “Neutral” ratings with more expanded notes. Fulton Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: FULT) actually saw its price target raised by Credit Suisse to $10.50 from $10.00 and saw its estimates raised. Valley National Bancorp (NYSE: VLY) saw its target cut to $11 from $12 and Credit Suisse is under the street on earnings estimates.

KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) and M&T Bank Corporation (NYSE: MTB) were both on our list of the 7 safest banks but Credit Suisse only has a Neutral rating on each. KeyCorp has a $7.00 price target, under the current price; M&T’s target at Credit Suisse is $91.00. KeyCorp is also expected to do much lower than the street consensus in earnings if Credit Suisse is correct. Regardless, neither bank is being removed from our safest banks list.

The “Outperform” ratings are in shares of First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE: FHN), Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB), Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN), Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF), SunTrust Banks Inc. (NYSE: STI) and Zions Bancorporation (NASDAQ: ZION).

Credit Suisse did key in on one Canadian bank and that was on “Outperform” rated Bank of Montreal (NYSE: BMO) with a $65 target on that one. The firm covered its U.S. Investor Day and said that management seemed quite confident about its growth prospects, including guiding to positive U.S. loan growth in the next few quarters. We believe investors left the event with a better sense of BMO’s U.S. expansion strategy.

After the reports on wider losses at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) and possibly from this call we have the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (NYSEMKT: KRE) down $0.19 at $26.46 this morning. Three of these banks mentioned in the Credit Suisse call are in the top ten holdings in that ETF.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls, Banking, Banking & Finance, Brokerage Firms, Corporate Governance, Earnings, Economy, Financial Stocks, Personal Finance, Research, Shareholder Issues Tagged: BBT, BMO, BOH, EVER, FHN, FITB, FULT, HBAN, JPM, KEY, KRE, MTB, RF, SNV, STI, TCB, VLY, ZION

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ANF, A, BBVA, CME, CROX, DE, DELL, DKS, HLF, HP, HBAN, ICE, LM, SINA, V, WAT)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:23:52 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls this Thursday.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE: BBVA) Raised to Neutral at BNP Paribas.

CME Group Icc. (NASDAQ: CME) Cut to Market Perform at Raymond James.

Crocs, Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX) Started as Neutral at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) Reiterated Buy with $96 target at Argus.

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) Raised to Neutral at Stern Agee.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) Reiterated Buy and Raised target to $58 at Argus.

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) Raised to Buy at Caris; David Einhorn did not discuss the issue at the Value Investing Congress on Wednesday; Reiterated Buy with $76 target at Canaccord Genuity.

Helmerich & Payne Inc. (NYSE: HP) Raised to Buy with $55 target at Argus.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ: HBAN) Maintained Outperform but cut 2012/2013 estimates and maintained $8 target at Credit Suisse.

IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) Raised to Strong Buy at Raymond James.

Legg Mason Inc. (NYSE: LM) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.

SINA Corp. (NASDAQ: SINA) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.

Visa, Inc. (NYSE: V) Maintained Buy but removed from the Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Waters Corp. (NYSE: WAT) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

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.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: A, ANF, BBVA, CME, CROX, DE, DELL, DKS, HBAN, HLF, HP, ICE, LM, SINA, V, WAT

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AMSC, CPHD, EGO, GME, HBAN, JCP, M, NVDA, PLCM, SAP, SVU, UAL, YELP)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 12:17:35 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Wednesday.

American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC) Started as Buy at Maxim Group.

Cepheid, Inc. (NASDAQ: CPHD) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Eldorado Gold Corporation (NYSE: EGO) Raised to Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

GameStop Corporation (NYSE: GME) Cut to Hold at Needham.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ: HBAN) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) Started as Neutral at UBS.

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) Started as Neutral at UBS.

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) Started as Outperform at RBC.

Polycom Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) Cut estimates but maintained Buy at Argus.

SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) Cut to Hold at ThinkEquity.

SuperValu Inc. (NYSE: SVU) maintained Neutral but cut target to $6 at Credit Suisse.

United Continental (NYSE: UAL) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Yelp Inc. (NYSE: YELP) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs; Started as Neutral at Citigroup; Started as Perform at Oppenheimer; Started as Hold at Jefferies.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AMSC, CPHD, EGO, GME, HBAN, JCP, M, NVDA, PLCM, SAP, SVU, UAL, Yelp

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AAPL, SCHW, ETN, ETFC, FFIV, HBAN, LNKD, MJN, PIR, GOLD, SBAC, AMTD, TYC, DIS, BAC, C, JPM)

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:09:10 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Cut to Neutral at BTIG.

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Eaton Corporation (NYSE: ETN) named the value stock of the day at Zacks.

E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN) Reiterated Neutral at Zacks.

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) Started as Hold at Needham.

Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (NYSE: MJN) Reiterated Outperform with $82 target at Credit Suisse.

Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) Maintained Hold but raised estimates at Argus.

Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Raised to Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.

SBA Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: SBAC) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: AMTD) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) Raised to Buy at Argus.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Credit Suisse has previewed top banks and noted on Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM): “We look BAC, C and JPM to benefit from improved trading in 1Q.” The firm talked up loan growth and demand and sees attractive valuations with improved profitability and greater capital deployment.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, AMTD, BAC, C, DIS, ETFC, ETN, FFIV, gold, HBAN, JPM, LNKD, MJN, PIR, SBAC, SCHW, TYC

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AIG, CMA, CNO, DE, DRQ, GOOG, HBAN, JEF, KEY, NVDA, OFG, PNRA, P, PEG, RF, URS, VE, ZUMZ)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 12:08:25 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Thursday.

American International Group (NYSE: AIG) Reiterated Buy with $40 target at BofA/ML.

Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.

CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: CNO) Started as Buy with $9 target at Goldman Sachs.

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) Reiterated Buy with $104 target at BofA/ML.

Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE: DRQ) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Reiterated Buy with $730 target at Argus.

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN) Started as Neutral at Citigroup.

Jefferies Group, Inc. (NYSE: JEF) Raised to Buy at Rochdale Securities.

KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) Started as Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald.

Oriental Financial Group Inc. (NYSE: OFG) named as value stock of the day at Zacks.

Panera Bread Company (NASDAQ: PNRA) Started as Outperform with $190 target at Credit Suisse.

Pandora Media, Inc. (NYSE: P) Started as Underweight at Barclays.

Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. (NYSE: PEG) Reiterated Buy with $40 target at Argus.

Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) Started as Neutral at Citigroup.

URS Corporation (NYSE: URS) Reiterated Underperform with $49 target at BofA/ML.

Veolia Environnement (NYSE: VE) Cut to Sell at Deutsche Bank.

Zumiez, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AIG, CMA, CNO, DE, DRQ, GOOG, HBAN, JEF, KEY, NVDA, OFG, P, PEG, PNRA, RF, URS, VE, ZUMZ