Thursday's Top Analysts Upgrades and Downgrades: Apple, eBay, General Dynamics, Goldman Sachs, Roku, Shopify, Spotify and More

Investing

Published: April 29, 2021 8:51 am

Last Updated: April 29, 2021 8:56 am

The futures all traded higher on Thursday after all the major indexes closed lower Wednesday, with only the Russell 2000 squeezing out a gain and the transport index posting another all-time high before retreating into negative territory. Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell once again downplayed inflation worries, noting that inflation pressures could rise in the coming months, but that these “one-time increases in prices are likely to only have transitory effects on inflation.”

Despite inflationary pressures the Federal Reserve vowed to keep interest rates contained, which could be one reason for the continued moves higher in the equity markets, even after sell-offs. 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 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 Thursday, April 29, 2021.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL): Goldman Sachs upgraded the technology giant to Neutral from Sell and also raised the price target to $130 from $80. The consensus target is much higher at $152.19, and the shares ended trading Wednesday at $133.58. The stock was up almost 3% in premarket trading after the company crushed earnings expectations.

Avantor Inc. (NASDAQ: AVTR): Stifel raised the stock to Buy from Hold and has a $40 price target. The lower consensus target is $34.29, and Wednesday’s closing print was $33.07.

Avery Dennison Corp. (NYSE: AVY): The JPMorgan upgrade to Neutral from Underweight included a price target hike to $215 from $155. The consensus target is $196.60, and Wednesday’s final print was $211.41. That was up almost 4% after the company beat earnings estimates and raised 2021 guidance.