Thursday's Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Arista Networks, Bumble, Cisco, ConocoPhillips, CrowdStrike, Eli Lilly, Emerson Electric, Freeport-McMoRan, Halliburton, Rio Tinto and More

Investing

Published: March 10, 2022 8:46 am

Last Updated: March 10, 2022 8:59 am

The futures were lower Thursday, after a huge risk-off rally that was finally able to hold its ground after numerous failed attempts earlier in the week. Wall Street pundits cited the very oversold levels of the market, as the Nasdaq had actually fallen into bear market territory, down over 20%, and a deep 12% drop in oil after it had spiked 35% higher since February 25.

In addition, a Reuters report cited positive-sounding rhetoric from a spokesperson at the Russian foreign ministry. That report conflicts somewhat as the Russian advance on Kyiv continues, and it was reported that talks between the two countries have broken down again after Russian demands hold up a deal that was nearly completed.

All the major indexes closed higher, with the aforementioned Nasdaq leading the way, up a strong 3.5% on the day. The safe-haven Treasury bond bid was absent again, as bonds sold off across the curve as yields moved higher. The benchmark 10-year note has tacked on 25 basis points since March 1. Gold also was a casualty, after hitting highs not seen since 2020, closing down over 3%.

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 10, 2022.

Anika Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIK): Barrington Research downgraded the shares to Market Perform from Outperform. Stephens cut its Overweight rating to Equal Weight with a $35 price objective. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $25 to $48.37 and have a $50.57 consensus target price. The shares were last seen on Wednesday at $26.22, which was down over 14% after posting disappointing results.

Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE: ANET): Wells Fargo’s upgrade to Overweight from Equal Weight included a target price hike to $160 from $142. The consensus target is $150.12. The stock closed over 5% higher on Wednesday to $120.61.

Automatic Data Processing Inc. (NYSE: ADP): BofA Securities upgraded the shares to Neutral from Underperform and has a $223 price target. The consensus target is $216.82. The final trade on Wednesday was reported at $209.70.

Bumble Inc. (NASDAQ: BMBL): Goldman Sachs cut its price target on the shares to $42 from $54 while keeping a Buy rating. The consensus target is $48.60. Wednesday’s close at $23.64 was up a stunning 42%. The dating app gained users, and that added to the parabolic move higher.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO): Wells Fargo downgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $70 target price to $65. The $64.34 consensus also compares with Wednesday’s closing share price of $55.92.