Thursday's Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Activision, Biogen, Carnival, HubSpot, Lam Research, Las Vegas Sands, Tesla, Zoom Video and More

Investing

Published: October 21, 2021 8:41 am

Last Updated: October 21, 2021 12:42 pm

The futures were lower across the board on Thursday, after a mixed trading day Wednesday that saw the Dow Jones industrials hit an intraday all-time high and the S&P 500 trade higher while the Nasdaq closed down. Continued solid earnings are helping to push the positive risk-off narrative, as the large-cap leaders continue to deliver the goods.

Earlier this week the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index fell 6.3%, following a 0.2% increase in the prior week. Pundits cite rising interest rates for the slowdown, but 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates remain historically very reasonable. Top strategists across Wall Street remain focused on continued rising interest rates though, as well as the quantitative easing tapering due to begin soon, big increases in energy costs, ongoing supply chain issues and stagflation worries. Toss in the debt ceiling and China worries, and the cauldron continues to simmer.

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, October 21, 2021.

Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI): Oppenheimer lowered the price target on shares of the video game giant to $100 from $105 while keeping an Overweight rating. The consensus price target is $114.85. The final trade on Wednesday was reported at $78.08 a share.

Aramark Corp. (NYSE: ARMK): Berenberg upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold and also nudged the target price to $40 from $36. The consensus target is $40.19. The stock closed trading on Wednesday at $36.07.

Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB): Oppenheimer slashed the price target on the biotechnology leader to $390 from $450 despite maintaining an Overweight rating. The consensus target is $370.56. The last trade on Wednesday hit the tape at $266.57.