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Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Coca-Cola, Credit Suisse, JPMorgan, McDonald's, Tesla, 3M, Wells Fargo and More

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The futures traded higher Thursday morning after a wild Wednesday that saw a big market rally, with the Dow Jones industrials and the S&P 500 hitting all-time highs. This despite the unrest in Washington, D.C., and some big dips in technology as investors size up how a Biden administration may deal with Silicon Valley. It is a pretty good bet now that 2021 could resemble last year, as many of the same tailwinds, like stimulus and low interest rates, remain on the table.

Investors should be reviewing portfolios very closely now and making adjustments in positioning for the first quarter and the balance of 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 Thursday, January 7, 2021.

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. (NYSE: APD) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, which kept a $324 price target. The Wall Street consensus target is $307, and shares were last seen Wednesday trading at $289.97, up almost 3% on the day.

American Equity Investment Life Holding Co. (NYSE: AEL) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at B. Riley Securities, which also lifted the price target to $36 from $30. The consensus target is $30.44. The last trade on Wednesday was posted at $29.30, up almost 8% on the day.

American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK) was started with an Overweight rating a $173 price target at Atlantic Equities. The consensus target is $159.17, and the stock closed Wednesday at $152.36 a share.

Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE: ANET) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a hefty $335 price target at Rosenblatt. That compares to the $283.23 consensus target and Wednesday’s $285.87 closing print.

Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) was downgraded at JPMorgan from Overweight to Neutral with a $55 price target. That compares with a $57.29 consensus target and Wednesday close at $50.52.

Credit Suisse Group A.G. (NYSE: CS) was raised to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan. Shares of the investment bank have traded between $6.47 and $14.12 and have a consensus price target of $14.47. The stock ended Wednesday trading at $13.79.

Ferrari N.V. (NYSE: RACE) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $127.73 to $233.66 and have a consensus price target of $231.46. The final trade on Wednesday came in at $221.75.

FootLocker Inc. (NYSE: FL) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Cowen, which also lifted the price objective to $55. The consensus target $43.33. The stock closed Wednesday at $43.60. The shares were up almost 4% in premarket trading.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was raised to Buy from Neutral at BofA Securities. The money center and banking giant has traded between $76.91 and $140.76 a share over the past 52 weeks and carries a consensus target of $131.18. The shares closed above that level Wednesday at $131.55 and were higher in the premarket.

Kratos Defense and Security Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS) was downgraded at Jefferies from Buy to Hold with a $27 price target. That compares to a $25.80 consensus target. Wednesday’s closing price was $26.69.

McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD) was raised from Perform to Outperform with a $240 price objective at Oppenheimer. The slightly higher consensus target is $241.67, and Wednesday’s close was at $211 a share.

Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) was raised at JPMorgan from Neutral to Overweight with a $32 price target. The consensus target is $24.62, and shares were last seen on Wednesday at $26.05, after a gain of over 6% on the day. They were following through nicely in the premarket, up an additional 4%.

Royal Caribbean Group Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that some of 2020’s dogs have been lifted to inequitable levels, and who would want to be left holding the bag? Shares last closed at $72.20 but have a consensus price target of $68.33.

Teladoc Health Inc. (NYSE: TDOC) was started with a Buy rating and a $240 price objective at BTIG Research. The consensus price objective is $242.78. The shares were last seen on Wednesday at $204.15.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was upgraded to Sector Perform from Underperform at RBC Capital Markets, which also lifted the price target on the electric vehicle giant to $700. Note that the consensus target price is only $438.83 and the most recent close was at $755.98 a share. The shares were up yet again, almost 3%, in the premarket.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) was downgraded at BofA Securities from Neutral to Underperform with a $170 price target. The posted consensus target is $179.44. The last trade for Wednesday came in at $174.19.

U.S. Bancorp Inc. (NYSE: USB) was raised to Buy from Hold at Jefferies, which also boosted the price target to $38. That compares with a $50.55 consensus target and Wednesday’s $49.01 close.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was also raised to Buy from Hold at Jefferies, with a $38 price objective. The $34.10 consensus target compares with a Wednesday closing trade of $32.69.

Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN) was downgraded to Perform from Outperform at Oppenheimer, even though the analyst remains upbeat toward a continuation of strong fundamentals the company has shown. The shares have traded between $6.82 and $24.91 over the past 52 weeks and closed Wednesday at $21.54.

Weyerhaeuser Corp. (NYSE: WY) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this stock is positioned to continue surging with lumber prices and the recovery of the economy. Shares most recently closed at $33.29 and have a consensus price target of $34.33.

Raymond James analysts are very positive on three top cybersecurity stocks, as corporate spending is expected to increase in the space.

Note that mining and metals stocks have been hitting new 52-week highs.

Wednesday morning’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Accenture, Barrick Gold, Beyond Meat, Capital One, Coca-Cola, Hershey, Kellogg, Mastercard, Wingstop and Winnebago. Analyst calls made later in the day included Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Tesla and more.

 

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