The futures were pulling back early on Monday, after seeing record levels for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones industrial average last week. Bitcoin saw its price rebound about 3% to start out the week, after a massive loss over the weekend. Despite the recent slowdown, earnings season is ramping up as the second week is now underway. Look for companies like Johnson & Johnson, Netflix, Snap and Verizon to report later this week.
Top strategists across Wall Street continue to point to the broad reopening of the economy, the tailwind from the stimulus package and the continued Federal Reserve pledges to keep interest rates contained as reasons for the continued moves higher in the equity markets. It also should be noted that money markets continue to see massive inflows, which is another big plus.
With major Wall Street firms still warning of the potential for impending 5% to 10% correction across the board, it makes sense for investors to continue building some cash reserves into the market strength, while repositioning portfolios for the start of the second quarter and the rest 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 Monday, April 19, 2021.
Baker Hughes Co. (NYSE: BKR): BMO Capital Markets upgraded it to Outperform from Market Perform but cut its price target to $26 from $27. The consensus target price is $27.20, and the final Friday trade came in at $20.10.
Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. (NYSE: COG): The BMO Capital Markets downgrade to Market Perform from Outperform included its price target lowered to $19 from $20. The consensus target is $21.42, and Friday’s final print was at $16.56 a share.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF): Exane BNP Paribas downgraded it to Neutral from Outperform. Shares last closed at $17.99, but the consensus price target is $20.35.
Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW): JPMorgan upgraded it to Overweight from Neutral with a $55 price target. The consensus target is a little higher at $46.04. The last trade to hit the tape on Friday was recorded at $45.80.
First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR): Citigroup upgraded it to Buy from Neutral and raised its price target to $100 from $88. The solar giant has traded in a 52-week range of $37.92 to $112.50 and has a consensus price target of $83.95. Friday’s final trade was reported at $80.14.
Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU): Raymond James lowered its Strong Buy rating to Outperform but hiked its price target to $286 from $255. That consensus target is slightly higher at $265.07, and the shares ended trading Friday at $257.51.
Livent Corp. (NYSE: LTHM): Evercore ISI upgraded the stock to Outperform from In Line and raised its price target to $22 from $20. The consensus target is lower at $18.64, and shares of the chemicals company were last seen on Friday at $16.60.
Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE): Mizuho raised price target to $148 from $129 as it upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral. The consensus target is $146.13. The stock closed at $138.14 on Friday.
Sketchers USA Inc. (NYSE: SKX): Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded it to Neutral from Buy. The posted consensus target is $45.90, and the shares ended trading on Friday at $44.82.
TG Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: TGTX): H.C. Wainwright reiterated it with a Buy rating and raised its price target to $89 from $79. The consensus target is $75.33, and the shares closed on Friday at $44.78.
Tractor Supply Co. (NASDAQ: TSCO): Telsey Advisory reiterated it with an Outperform rating and lifted the price target to $200 from $190. The consensus target is at $168.20, and the stock was last seen trading at $181.08.
Valvoline Inc. (NYSE: VVV): As Jefferies upgraded its Hold rating to Buy, the firm also raised its price target to $40 from $25. The consensus target is $28.00. Friday’s last trade came in at $27.21, up almost 1% on the day.
Vista Outdoor Inc. (NYSE: VSTO): B. Riley Securities reiterated its Buy rating but raised the price target to $49 from $41. The consensus target is $39.00, and the shares ended trading Friday at $31.71.
Vizio Inc. (NYSE: VZIO): JPMorgan started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $30 price target. Wells Fargo initiated coverage at Overweight with a $31 price target, and BofA Securities started it at Buy with a $33 price target. The stock closed on Friday at $24.00.
Western Alliance Bancorp. (NYSE: WAL): Wells Fargo upgraded it from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $120 price target. The consensus target is $109.50, and the stock closed Friday at $100.26, up almost 8% on the day.
Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA): BMO Capital Markets started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $15 price target. The consensus target is just $13.02, and the stock closed on Friday at $10.56.
Five BofA Securities defensive stock picks make sense for investors who are looking to stay in the game but concerned about the lofty multiples across the stock market. These companies should benefit from economic growth through 2021.
Friday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included BP, Comcast, Coinbase, Cisco Systems, D.R. Horton, Editas Medicine, FuelCell, KB Home, Micron Technology, Splunk, United Airlines and more. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Amazon.com, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Walt Disney and more.
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