Stocks closed higher on Tuesday, but the major indexes were directionless on Thursday despite another drop in weekly jobless claims. With an election coming up and with what is still a very deep recession despite such a strong recovery in stocks from the March lows, investors should be considering how they want their assets positioned for the second half 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.
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.
These are the top analyst calls we have seen on Thursday, July 9, 2020.
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Advanced Energy Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: AEIS) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $73 from $67 (versus a $69.47 prior close) at Raymond James.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) was started with a Buy rating and a $275 price target at Needham. Alibaba closed up almost 9% at $257.68 on Wednesday.
Asbury Automotive Group Inc. (NYSE: ABG) was reiterated as Hold but its target was raised to $100 from $70 (versus a $92.01 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.
Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the price target was cut to $25 from $27 at D.A. Davidson.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) was reiterated as Neutral but the price target was raised to $10 from $5 at UBS. Shares closed up 1.6% at $10.41 on Wednesday, with an $8.19 consensus target price, but they were trading down almost 8% at $9.60 on Thursday’s early indications.
Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND) was maintained with a Sell rating but its price target was raised to $105 from $75 (versus a $144.98 close) at UBS. Its consensus price target was $101.48.
Bloomin’ Brands Inc. (NASDAQ: BLMN) was started as Neutral but with a $12 price target (versus a $10.19 close) at Credit Suisse.
Cedar Fair L.P. (NYSE: FUN) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Janney.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $1,450 from $1,100 at Piper Sandler.
Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight with a $54 price target at Morgan Stanley, with the firm noting that Cisco’s earnings multiple discount is at a 10-year extreme versus the S&P 500. Shares closed up 0.4% at $45.81 ahead of the call, with a $48.81 consensus target price, and they were indicated up 2.5% at $46.95 ahead of Thursday’s opening bell.
CoreLogic Inc. (NASDAQ: CLGX) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.
Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) was started with an Outperform rating and a $95 price target (versus a $73.12 close) at Credit Suisse. It had an $85.78 prior consensus target price.
DocuSign Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) was reiterated as Outperform and the price target was raised to $240 from $165 (versus a $206.35 close) at Wedbush Securities.
Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. (NYSE: AQUA) was reiterated as Strong Buy and its price target was raised to $21 from $19 (versus a $17.81 close) at Raymond James.
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First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $62 from $56 at Raymond James. The stock closed up over 9% at $58.06 and had a $53.57 consensus target price.
Hub Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HUBG) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.
Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK) was reiterated as Outperform but its price target was raised to $95 and it was added to the Best Ideas List at Wedbush. Shares closed at $74.27 ahead of the call.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was raised to Buy from Neutral and its price target was raised to $117 from $102 at D.A. Davidson.
KLA Corp. (NASDAQ: KLAC) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen.
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $260 from $220 (versus a $212.83 close) at Wedbush. The call is reflecting the strength of Azure, and Wedbush’s new bull case is now up at $300 for Microsoft shares.
Pentair PLC (NYSE: PNR) was raised to Buy from Underperform with a new $46 price objective (versus a $36.62 close) at BofA Securities. Pentair’s 52-week range is $22.01 to $47.43, and its consensus target price was $41.31.
Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays. Shares closed up almost 2% at $9.50, and they had a $9.47 consensus target price.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) was raised to Buy from Hold and the price target was raised to $750 from $400 (versus a $640.88 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. This is not just a COVID-19 call, as it sees the company having greater pipeline confidence.
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Janney.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: SIX) was raised to Buy from Hold at Janney.
Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen.
Sunnova Energy International Inc. (NYSE: NOVA) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $22 from $16.50 at Raymond James.
Southwestern Energy Com. (NYSE: SWN) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $4 price target (versus a $2.68 close) at MKM Partners.
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was maintained as Neutral with a $1,250 price target at Wedbush, but the shares were indicated up after Wedbush’s report sees a snapback in demand in China, with a significant EV market penetration ramp up over the next 12 to 18 months that could be worth $400 per share to Tesla.
Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) was reiterated as Outperform but its target price was cut to $69 from $73 (versus a $52.98 close) at Raymond James.
Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ: WING) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BTIG.
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Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Altria, Apple, Caterpillar, Citigroup, JPMorgan, Nikola, Nokia, Novavax, Transocean, Valero Energy, Walt Disney, Wells Fargo and more.
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