Markets got off to a mixed start on Monday, as investors are still cautious over ongoing inflation concerns and more potential Russian sanctions. This mixed performance was in part due to rising oil prices, along with other commodities.

Morgan Stanley recently reiterated the bearish sentiment that the rebound in equities markets seen over the past couple of weeks may be over. Chief U.S. Equity Strategist, Michael Wilson, wrote to clients Monday morning that “The bear market rally is over,” among other things. He was also quick to note that the coming economic slowdown will be the result of a flurry of factors, none of which it seems will be able to be fixed in the near term.

Overall, Morgan Stanley’s thesis points to a “payback in demand from last year’s fiscal stimulus, demand destruction from high prices, food and energy price spikes from the war that serve as a tax, and inventory builds that have now caught up to demand.” The bottom line is that these headwinds ultimately will take their toll on investors and the economy in general.

While Morgan Stanley has solidified itself as one of the biggest bears currently on Wall Street, there are those taking the other side of the trade. Of course, none of this is written in stone and some firms are even lifting their targets.

24/7 Wall St. is reviewing additional analyst calls seen on Monday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on AMD, Dollar General, Nio, PayPal, Walgreens and many more.

Blend Labs Inc. (NYSE: BLND): William Blair downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Outperform. The 52-week trading range is $4.45 to $21.04, and shares were trading near $5 apiece on Monday.

Crocs Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX): Loop Capital’s downgrade to Hold from Buy included a price target cut to $80 from $150. The stock traded near $75 on Monday. The 52-week trading range is $66.50 to $183.88.

DCP Midstream L.P. (NYSE: DCP): Evercore ISI raised its In-Line rating Outperform. The stock traded near $33 on Monday. The 52-week trading range is $21.52 to $36.71.

Duck Creek Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: DCT): Wolfe Research downgraded the shares to Peer Perform from Outperform and cut the price target to $19 from $32. Shares were trading near $19 on Monday. The 52-week range is $18.60 to $50.90.
Gold Fields Ltd. (NYSE: GFI): J.P. Morgan’s downgrade was from Overweight to Neutral with a $15.30 price target. Shares were trading near $15 on Monday. The 52-week range is $7.75 to $17.20.

Hercules Capital Inc. (NYSE: HTGC): Piper Sandler downgraded it from Overweight to Neutral with a $19 price target. Shares were trading near $18 on Monday. The 52-week range is $15.91 to $18.63.

Hologic Inc. (NASDAQ: HOLX): Evercore ISI’s downgrade was from Outperform to In-Line with an $80 price target. Shares were trading near $75. The 52-week range is $60.10 to $81.04.

Leslie’s Inc. (NASDAQ: LESL): Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and raised the price target to $27 from $26. Shares were trading near $21 on Monday. The 52-week range is $18.14 to $31.55.

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OLLI): Wells Fargo’s upgrade to Overweight from Equal Weight included a price target hike to $65 from $45. The stock was trading near $47 on Monday, and the 52-week range is $37.67 to $98.58.

Quest Diagnostics Inc. (NYSE: DGX): Citigroup downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and cut the price target to $140 from $175. The stock was trading near $135 on Monday, and the 52-week range is $125.69 to $174.16.

Silverback Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SBTX): Goldman Sachs lowered its Buy rating to Neutral and slashed the $25 price target to $3.50. The stock traded near $3 a share on Monday. The 52-week range is $3.06 to $45.50.

WD-40 Co. (NASDAQ: WDFC): D.A. Davidson downgraded it from Neutral to Underperform with a $157 price target. The 52-week trading range is $174.00 to $321.41, and shares were trading near $178 on Monday.

Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL): The Scotiabank upgrade was to Sector Outperform from Sector Perform, and the firm has a $110 price target. The 52-week trading range is $70.74 to $99.43, and shares were trading near $98 apiece on Monday.

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With the potential for a sizable correction looming, investors may want to consider five Dividend Aristocrats that are in sectors that are defensive and that are poised to do well for the rest of 2022. With even moderate appreciation in their share prices, investors could be looking at double-digit total return potential.

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