The futures were lower after the long weekend to start a shortened trading week. All the major indexes closed lower on Friday but capped off a very solid week that saw the S&P 500, despite a dip Friday, finishing higher for a fifth week of gains. That has not happened since November 2021. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 printed 52 weeks highs on Friday as well. With most of the market-moving data out of the way last week, with the consumer price index and the pause in the Federal Reserve rate hikes, investors will key in on how things stack up for the second half of the year, with only 10 days left in the first half.
After some solid buying last week, the sellers returned to the Treasury markets on Friday. Yields across the curve finished the day higher. The benchmark 10-year note closed out the week at 3.77%, while the two-year paper ended at 4.72%. The difference in yields between the shorter and longer maturity is an inversion that bond traders have been eyeing since last year. History shows that when the bonds trade like this, a recession could be on the way.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude finished the week on a solid up note. WTI was the big winner, closing up 1.65% at $71.78. The black gold got a solid boost when China jumped back in the demand argument, as policymakers may be getting ready to jumpstart their economy. The government eased monetary policy and boosted import quotas for the country’s refineries. Natural gas closed out a solid week, finishing Friday at $2.63, up almost 4%.
Gold finished a very up-and-down week closing flat on Friday at $1968.90. The bullion has been in a tight trading range since posting 52-week highs earlier this year. Top sector strategists cited the solid base being put in as a solid technical aspect that could move prices to new highs as 2023 rolls on. Bitcoin, which has been in a downward spiral, closed Friday up almost 3% at $26,296.
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 Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI): Stifel reiterated with a Buy rating with a $88 price target. The consensus target is up at $91.14, and Friday’s close was at $81.97 a share.
Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE): Goldman Sachs raised its $480 target price on the Buy-rated shares to $550. The consensus target is just $449.31. Friday’s close was at $495.18.
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