Ameren Corp. (NYSE: AEE) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) was reiterated as Outperform and the target price was raised to $854 from $810 at Credit Suisse, with the firm noting that the auto parts stock is in the right zone now and it sees steady underlying trends ahead.

Burlington Stores Inc. (NYSE: BURL) was reiterated as Outperform and the price target was raised to $190 from $178 at Credit Suisse. The firm noted that Burlington is setting up for a relative earnings acceleration into 2019.

Chico’s FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform with a $4.50 price target (versus a $4.79 close, but after a 34.5% drop) at RBC Capital Markets. Citi maintained its Neutral rating but cut its target to $5 from $9 after the drop.

Columbia Sportswear Co. (NASDAQ: COLM) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $105 target price (versus an $89.86 close) at Stifel.

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRL) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $210 target price (versus a $181.13 close) at Argus.

Genesis Healthcare Inc. (NYSE: GEN) was raised to Buy from Hold and the target price was raised to $2.50 from $2.00 (versus a $1.31 close) at Stifel. It has a 52-week trading range of $0.60 to $2.86 and a market cap of only $211 million.

Harris Corp. (NYSE: HRS) was reiterated as Buy at Argus, with the firm noting that the recent share price weakness offers a buying opportunity. Trading at $143.60, it has a 52-week range of $138.08 to $175.50.

MPLX L.P. (NYSE: MPLX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy with a $36 price objective (versus a $33.23 close) at Merrill Lynch. It has a yield equivalent of about 7.5% for its distribution.

ONEOK Inc. (NYSE: OKE) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $67 price target (versus a $60.52 close) at Citigroup.

PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE: PPG) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $123 target price (versus a $107.64 close) at Citigroup.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY) was maintained as Buy but the price target was lowered to $89 (versus a $73.96 close, after a 3% gain) at Argus. The firm noted a strong fourth-quarter EPS report but the lower target is based on a less favorable currency rate.

Skyline Champion Corp. (NYSE: SKY), the second largest producer of manufactured homes in the United States with 17% of the market, was started as Neutral and assigned a $25 target price at Credit Suisse.

Targa Resources Corp. (NYSE: TRGP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the target price was lowered to $45 from $56 at Citigroup. It has an 8% yield, and its 52-week trading range is $41.75 to $59.21.

TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $55 price target (versus a $47.85 close) at Argus.

United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) was defended with a Buy rating maintained at Argus, with the independent research firm noting that the post-breakup drop offers an attractive buying opportunity for investors. Shares closed up just five cents at $122.73 on Wednesday’s strong day, and this stock was at roughly $128 prior to its announcement that it was splitting into three companies.

Veracyte Inc. (NASDAQ: VCYT) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Janney, after closing up 3.4% at $12.54 on Wednesday.

Wednesday’s top analyst calls included Abbott Labs, Boston Scientific, CME, DaVita, Skyworks Solutions, Spirit Airlines, AMD, Nvidia and many more.

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