The futures were higher Thursday, after investors were finally treated to what many across Wall Street felt was an “oversold rally.” All the major indexes ended higher, with both the Russell 2000 and the transports joining in on the risk-on move. The possibility of more negotiations between Russia and Ukraine diplomats was one reason for the firm market tone. Some pundits cited the Federal Reserve perhaps adopting a less aggressive tightening path, but many top firms threw cold water on that idea, citing the explosion of inflation, currently the highest monthly and year-over-year increases since the early 1980s. However, Wednesday, Fed Chair Powell did say he is inclined to support just a 25 basis point hike at the policy meeting this month.

The biggest selling on Wednesday was seen in the Treasury markets, as yields zoomed higher across the yield curve, with the two-year yield jumping a stunning 19 basis points and the benchmark 10-year note 16 basis points higher, as the flight-to-safety bid faded. Gold also saw an influx of sellers, with the precious metal closing down almost 2% at $1,927 per ounce. Oil however soared to prices not seen since 2011, as both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude traded well above the $110 level.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh 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, March 3, 2022.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT): BofA Securities resumed coverage on the pharmaceutical giant with a Buy rating and $140 price objective. The consensus target is $143.53. The closing share price on Wednesday was $120.36.

Antero Midstream Corp. (NYSE: AM): Barclays downgraded the stock to Underweight from Equal Weight and trimmed the $11 target price to $10. The consensus target is $10.33. The shares closed on Wednesday at $10.04.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: BKNG): Evercore ISI upgraded the stock to Outperform from In Line and raised the $2,500 price target to $2,900. That compares with the $2,686.11 consensus target and Wednesday’s close at $2,163.42, which was up over 4%.

C3.ai (NYSE: AI): J.P. Morgan raised its Underweight rating to Neutral but lowered the target price to $27 from $43. The consensus target is up at $55.44. The last trade on Wednesday was at $22.66 a share.

C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRW): Vertical Research downgraded it from Buy to Hold with a $110 target price. The consensus target is $103.90. The stock closed on Wednesday at $102.94.

Equitrans Midstream Corp. (NYSE: ETRN): Though Barclays upgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Underweight, it also cut the $11 target to $7. The consensus target is $9.29. Shares closed at $6.75 on Wednesday, up close to 5% for the day.

FS KKR Capital Corp. (NYSE: FSK): Wells Fargo raised its Equal Weight rating on business development company to Underweight and boosted the $19.50 target to $21.50. The consensus target is $22.63. The stock closed Wednesday at $23.12, up almost 4% on the day. Note that the stock pays a huge 10.90% distribution and will go ex-dividend on March 15.

GXO Logistics Inc. (NYSE: GXO): Stifel started coverage with a Buy rating and a $94 price objective. The consensus target is $105. The final trade Wednesday was at $79.16 a share.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. (NYSE: HPE): Bernstein raised the legacy tech company to Outperform from Market Perform and has a $20 target. The consensus target is $17.91. The shares closed on Wednesday at $16.99, up over 10% after posting very solid results.

iQIYI (NASDAQ: IQ): J.P. Morgan upgraded the shares to Overweight from Neutral and raised the $5 target to $8. The consensus target is $8.54. The shares closed at $5.04 on Wednesday.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ): BofA Securities resumed coverage on the health care heavyweight with a Neutral rating and a $185 target price. The consensus target is $186.44. The shares closed on Wednesday at $166.04.

Opendoor Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: OPEN): BTIG Research upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and has a $15 target price. The consensus target is up at $17.50. The last trade on Wednesday was reported at $8.59, up over 4% on the day.

Rivian Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: RIVN): RBC Capital Markets reiterated a Buy rating on the red-hot electric vehicle newcomer but slashed the $165 target price to $116. The consensus target is $126.57. The closing share price on Wednesday of $53.56 was down a stunning 14% on the day.

Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM): Stifel reiterated a Buy rating but cut the target price to $300 from $350. Wedbush kept an Outperform rating and lowered its $315 price objective to $275, while Raymond James maintained a Strong Buy rating and the price target dropped to $300 from $340. The consensus target is $307.56. The shares ended Wednesday at $210.39.

SoFi Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SOFI): BofA Securities cut its Buy rating to Neutral with a $14 price target. The consensus target is $17.95. The stock closed on Wednesday at $11.58.

Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT): UBS reiterated a Buy rating on the popular retailer and nudged the $290 target to $295. Truist Securities reiterated a Buy rating but its price target dropped to $261 from $270. RBC Capital Markets kept an Outperform rating and lifted the target price to $294 from $278. The consensus target is $277.74. The shares ended Wednesday at $224.90.
Teck Resources Ltd. (NYSE: TECK): Zacks named this coal and copper miner as the Bull of the Day stock. The analyst points out that very few companies complete the journey from penny stock to mid-double digits, and this bull is not slowing down. Shares last closed at $38.71, having overrun the consensus price target of $38.65.

Trade Desk Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD): Guggenheim started coverage with a Buy rating on the digital media giant, and it has a $108 target price. The consensus target is $95.67. The final trade on Wednesday hit the tape at $82.26.

Vroom Inc. (NASDAQ: VRM): Stifel downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy. Over the past year, the stock has traded in a stunning range of $5.10 to $49.03. The consensus target is $17.50. The shares closed Wednesday at $2.98, down another 9% after a massive 47% drop Tuesday in the wake of a dreadful quarterly report.

Workhorse Group Inc. (NASDAQ: WKHS): Roth Capital upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy with a $7 price target. The consensus target is $6.86. The shares closed on Wednesday at $3.79.

Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZBH): Loop Capital downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy and has a $130 target price. The consensus target for the medical devices giant is $132.79. The final trade for Wednesday was at $122.69 a share.

Zscaler Inc. (NASDAQ: ZS): Daiwa Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Underperform and lifted the price objective to $296 from $286. The higher consensus target is $329.85, and the final print on Wednesday was $254.41.

Zoom Video Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM): Wolfe Research lowered the price target to $140 while downgrading the shares to Underperform from Peer Perform. The consensus price objective is up at $215.51. The final trade for Wednesday was reported at $121.61.

Six dividend-paying energy stocks offer different angles for investors who are more conservative to generate income and participate in the biggest rally in the energy and oil space since 2011. Plus, they are all rated Buy at major Wall Street firms.

Wednesday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Allstate, Arista Networks, Comcast, DraftKings, GoodRx, Kroger, Live Nation Entertainment, Luminar Technologies, Snap, Twitter, Voya Financial, Vroom, Waste Management, Workday and Zoom Video Communications. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Abbott Labs, Chevron, Marathon Oil, Meta Platforms and more.

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