Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Amgen, Amphenol, Continental Resources, EOG, FedEx, IMAX, Splunk and More

Investing

Published: December 29, 2020 9:07 am

Last Updated: December 29, 2020 10:29 am

The futures traded higher Tuesday morning as the Santa Claus rally rolls on, where all three of the major indexes and the Russell 2000 hit all-time highs during Monday’s trading. President Trump signing the coronavirus relief and the government funding bill was the main impetus behind the Monday surge higher. End-of-year window dressing and rebalancing also will be a factor this week. Investors should be reviewing portfolios closely now and adjusting positioning for 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday, December 29, 2020.

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) was started at Daiwa Securities with a Buy rating and a $300 price objective from the biotechnology giant. The Wall Street consensus target is just $253.29, and Monday’s closing print was $223.65. Amgen looks poised to be one of the 2021 Dogs of the Dow.

Amphenol Corp. (NYSE: APH) was resumed in coverage at JPMorgan with a Neutral rating and a $138 price target. The consensus target is $136.13. The shares were last seen on Monday at $129.84.

Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ARCT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James and from Overweight to Equal Weight with a $46 price target at Barclays. Baird downgraded the shares to Neutral from Outperform with a $69 price objective. The shares were pummeled after releasing a clinical update on COVID-19 vaccine trials. The consensus price target of $106.15 will surely be hammered, as shares closed Monday at $92.42 but were trading down a stunning 37% in the premarket.

BeyondSpring Inc. (NASDAQ: BYSI) was started with an Outperform rating and a $30 price target at Evercore ISI. That compares to the higher consensus target of $35.50 and Monday’s close at $10.96. Shares were 3% higher in premarket trading.

Caesarstone Ltd. (NASDAQ: CTSE) was started with a Buy rating at Benchmark. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $7.65 to $15.86. No consensus target was posted, and the last trade for Monday came in at $10.80 a share.

Chico’s FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that the retail apocalypse is exploding amid this global pandemic, and no brick-and-mortar business is safe. Shares last closed at $1.90 but have a consensus price target of $1.67.

Collegium Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: COLL) was reiterated with a Buy rating and is the top pick for 2021 at Needham. The analysts also set a $34 price objective, well above the $28.29 consensus target. The stock closed Monday at $18.94.

Continental Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLR) was raised to Overweight from Sector Weight at Keybanc Capital Markets with a $20 price target. The consensus target is $17.27, and Monday’s closing price was $16.26.

EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE: EOG) saw its price target raised to $63 from $50 at Truist Securities, which reiterated its Buy rating on the energy company. The consensus target is $63.14, and Monday’s final print was $48.94 per share.