The futures were mixed to start off the new trading week, after Friday’s risk-on rally that saw all the major indexes finish the day higher. Top financial media pundits cited the selling for most of the week as an issue, as much of the buying appears to be of the short-covering variety. With the Federal Reserve meeting now just nine days away, and at least another 25-basis-point increase on tap, more and more are expecting that, at the minimum, a mild recession is on the way.
Treasury yields were higher across the curve, as the sellers returned after massive buying earlier in the week and drove the yield on the 10-year note down to the lowest level in four months. Even with the selling pressure, the 10-year closed at 3.47%, which keeps the inversion to the two-year paper in place as it closed Friday at 4.18%.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both finished the day and the week higher, as the two benchmarks finished with a second straight weekly gain after some big selling to start the year. Once again, energy analysts cited the prospect of a resurgence in demand from China as a reason for the strength. In addition, the rig count in the United States saw the largest weekly drop in the past 16 months.
Natural gas finished the day lower at $3.22, as warmer weather in Europe continues to tamp down demand. Natural gas has seen some mammoth price swings over that past year, and some across the energy sector feel it may be a very solid trade to put on now. Gold finished Friday lower, while Bitcoin closed up over 1%, keeping the cryptocurrency over the $21,000 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 Monday, January 23, 2023.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating and has an $85 target price. The consensus target is $91.01, and shares closed almost 4% higher on Friday at $70.07.
Allstate Corp. (NYSE: ALL): BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage with a Market Perform rating and a $130 target price. The consensus target is $147.07. The stock closed on Friday at $125.65.
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