Investing

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: BlackRock, Capital One, Kroger, Nordstrom, Starbucks, Wells Fargo and More

Lee Jackson

Published: July 2, 2018 8:45 am

Last Updated: January 11, 2020 9:35 pm

The futures traded lower Monday morning as investors focused on the start of the third quarter. With earnings season ready to start in earnest next week, and the holiday-shortened week in place with the 4th of July celebration on Wednesday, it could be a very slow volume week for the indexes as trading is expected to be muted.

The trend of buying the dips has not worked as well as it has in prior years, and many investors have been considering how they want their investments positioned for the longer term.

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. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy and some cover stocks to sell or to avoid. Here, additional color and commentary have been added on some of these daily analyst calls. The consensus analyst price target data are from the Thomson Reuters sell-side research service.

These were the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and other research calls from Monday, July 2, 2018.

BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK) was removed from the Focus List at JPMorgan. The 52-week trading range for the financial giant is $408.62 to $594.52. The Wall Street consensus price target for the stock is $613.15, and it closed trading on Friday at $499.04 a share.

Canon Inc. (NYSE: CAJ) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs. The stock has traded between $32.20 and $40.67 over the past year. The consensus price target is posted at $32.73. The shares ended trading last Friday at $32.69.

Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse. The bank has traded in a 52-week range of $76.98 to $106.50, and the consensus price target is set at $112.67. The shares closed Friday at $91.90.

Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) saw its price target lowered to $224 from $230 at Stifel. The analysts revised their forecasts down, mainly for higher beer costs and a discount to managers’ wine and spirits revenue and margin outlook, moving to the middle of managers’ outlook as a result. The Stifel target compares to the consensus target of $253.05. The shares closed Friday at $218.87, down almost 6% on the day.

Howard Hughes Corp. (NYSE: HHC) was started with a Buy rating and a $170 price target at Jefferies. The consensus target for the stock is lower at $159. It closed Friday at $132.50 a share.

Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) was resumed in coverage at Deutsche Bank with a Neutral rating and a $30 price target. That compares with the consensus target of $30.19. The stock closed trading Friday at $28.45.

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen. Shares of the luxury department store have traded in a 52-week range of $37.79 to $54. The consensus price target is posted at $52.75, and shares closed Friday at $51.78.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) was maintained with an Equal Weight rating at Stephens, but the firm chopped the price target on the coffee retailer to $53 from $58. The consensus price target is $60.43. The stock closed trading on Friday at $48.85, and it has been under pressure since the disappointing earnings report.

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Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley. The firm raised the price target on the shares to $62 from $57. The 52-week trading range for the bank is $49.27 to $66.31, and the consensus price target is posted at $60.91. The shares closed Friday at $55.44, up over 3% on the day.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NYSE: WBA) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $59.07 to $83.89, and the consensus price target is $74.77. The shares ended trading last Friday at $60.01.

Other key analysts upgrades and downgrades were seen in the following:

Curtiss-Wright Corp. (NYSE: CW) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at William Blair. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $91.18 to $143.38. The consensus price target is set at $149.17, and the stock ended trading on Friday at $119.02.

Fiesta Restaurants Group Inc. (NASDAQ: FRGI) was removed from the Best Ideas List at Wedbush. The stock has traded over the past year in a range of $15.50 to $29.30. The consensus price target is posted at $25.33. The stock closed Friday at $28.70, so this could be a valuation call.

Integra Life Sciences Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: IART) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup. The 52-week trading range is $41.51 to $67.70, and the consensus price target is $63.27. The stock closed Friday at $64.41.

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Nielsen Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: NLSN) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $29.51 to $43.61, and the consensus price target is set at $39.70. The stock ended trading last Friday at $30.93.

PACCAR Inc. (NASDAQ: PCAR) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Baird. The 52-week trading range is $60.39 to $79.69, and the consensus price target is $72. The stock closed Friday at $61.96.

ResMed Inc. (NYSE: RMD) was started with a Buy rating at Goldman Sachs. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $71.29 and $108.29, and the consensus price target is $97.86. The stock closed above that level on Friday, at $103.58.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (NYSE: TSM) was raised to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna. The 52-week trading range is $34.31 to $46.67, and the consensus price target is $44.65. The stock ended trading on Friday at $36.56.

In case you missed it, last Friday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Diageo, Harley-Davidson, KB Home, NetApp, Nike, Sirius XM, Walgreens and many more.