The futures were trading lower after the major indexes closed decidedly mixed, as the venerable Dow Jones industrial average closed lower while the tech-heavy Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both hit 52-week highs again on Wednesday. As expected, the Federal Reserve paused the rate hikes that have come at every meeting for over a year now. While it may be the pause that refreshes, Fed Chair Powell stated that two more rate hikes were likely on the way later this year.
While the consumer price index data this week was encouraging, the rate of inflation, especially at the core level, is still way above the benchmarks that the Fed has set. U.S. producer prices, reported Wednesday, jumped 1.1% over the last year, marking the 11th consecutive decline in the year-over-year rate of change and the lowest print since December 2020. The index peaked at 11.7% in March 2022.
Treasury yields were down across the curve as bond traders seemingly were positioned to Buy after rates had crept back up to levels not seen since March. The Treasury Department will be hitting the market with a tsunami of inventory of all government maturities, which is estimated at a stunning $1 trillion as the country’s coffers need to be refilled. The 10-year paper closed the day down four basis points at 3.80%, while the two-year note closed at 4.69%, flat on the day. The inversion between the two still indicates a recession could be on the way.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude had a weak day, with both closing down following Tuesday’s solid 3.5% gain. The tug-of-war over China demand still is the leading headline, along with slowing production, as the rig count has continued to fall on a weekly basis. Natural gas finished the day unchanged at $2.34.
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Gold continued its slow start to the week by closing lower at $1,955.70. Traders cited the drop in the producer price index and the general malaise around the bullion over the past month as the reason for the recent weakness. Bitcoin was hammered also on Wednesday, continuing a dreadful stretch that has been aided by worries over regulation. The cryptocurrency finished the day at $25,086, 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.
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These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Thursday, June 15, 2023.
Albemarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB | ALB Price Prediction): KeyBanc Capital Markets started coverage on the stock with a Buy rating and a $260 target price. The consensus target is $263.54, and the stock closed on Wednesday at $226.80.
California Water Service Group (NYSE: CWT): UBS downgraded the shares to Sell from Neutral. The consensus target price is $61 for now. The stock closed over 4% lower on Wednesday at $51.59 after the downgrade.
Catalent Inc. (NYSE: CTLT): Jefferies cut its Buy rating to Hold and its $45 target price to $44. The consensus target is $50.08. Wednesday’s $42.09 close was down 4% for the day on the downgrade.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG): Piper Sandler resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $2,075 price target. The consensus target is $2,082.76. The closing share price on Wednesday was $2,061.17.
Cinemark Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CNK): As B. Riley Securities downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy, it nudged the $21 price target to $20. The consensus target is $18.41. The shares closed on Wednesday at $17.23, which was down over 6% for the day on the downgrade.
CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD): KeyBanc Capital Markets initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $200 price target. The consensus target is $181.24. Wednesday’s close was at $151.90.
Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ: DECK): Raymond James initiated coverage with an Outperform rating. Its $565 target price compares with the $530.12 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing trade of $506.73, which was up over 3% on the day.
Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ): Piper Sandler started coverage with an Overweight rating and a target price of $349. The consensus target is $350.71, and the stock closed on Wednesday at $305.72.
DoorDash Inc. (NYSE: DASH): When Gordon Haskett downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy, the analyst trimmed the $73 price target to $72. The consensus target is $77.39. Shares closed over 2% lower on Wednesday at $71.50.
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Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL): Berenberg upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold. Its $243 target price compares with the $240.57 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing print of $192.15.
Icahn Enterprises L.P. (NYSE: IEP): Citing inflated net asset value, poor fundamentals and negative headlines, Zacks selected this as its Bear of the Day stock. Shares have traded as high as $55.16 in the past year but closed most recently at $29.28.
IPG Photonics Corp. (NASDAQ: IPGP): The Market Perform rating at Raymond James is now at Outperform. Its $170 target price is well above the consensus target of $138.14 and Wednesday’s close at $132.83.
Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK): Piper Sandler started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $93 target price. The consensus target is $101.63. The stock closed at $91.58 on Wednesday.
Logitech International S.A. (NASDAQ: LOGI): Citigroup’s downgraded to Neutral from Buy included a target price cut to $70 from $73. The consensus target is $65.33. Wednesday’s $56.81 close was down over 11% on the downgrade.
McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD): Piper Sandler resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $308 target price. The consensus is up at $318.45. Wednesday’s close was at $288.44.
NVR Inc. (NYSE: NVR): Seaport Research Partners started coverage of the homebuilder with a Buy rating and a $7,000 target price. The consensus target is $5,666.67, which is lower than Wednesday’s $5,886.57 close.
Papa John’s International Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA): Piper Sandler started coverage with a Neutral rating and a $77 target price. The consensus target is $91.93, and Wednesday’s last trade was delivered at $73.56.
ServiceNow Inc. (NYSE: NOW): Needham started coverage with a Buy rating and a $660 target price. The $547.23 consensus target is lower than Wednesday’s close at $567.31.
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Sherwin-Williams Co. (NYSE: SHW): Citigroup initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $283 target price. The $256.69 consensus target is closer to Wednesday’s close at $245.85.
Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): As MoffettNathanson upgraded the stock to Outperform from Equal Weight, its $75 target price increased to $80. The consensus target is $80.73. The shares closed on Wednesday at $65.06.
Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SPCE): Alembic Global Advisors boosted its Underweight rating to Neutral with a $4.75 target price. The consensus target is $4.20, and shares closed on Wednesday at $4.39.
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Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Apple, Devon Energy, EOG Resources, First Horizon, Global Payments, Mobileye Global, Netflix, Oracle, PagSeguro Digital, PayPal, Radian, StoneCo, Ulta Beauty and Urban Outfitters.
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