The futures were trading mixed after a solid bounceback day for the equity markets on Wednesday that followed a brutal sell-off on Tuesday, which was the worst day for stocks since last March. All the major indexes closed higher on Wednesday, as bargain hunters sifted through the rubble. All eyes will now turn to the monthly payroll data due out on Friday morning; estimates are for 170,000 jobs added. Some feel the job market could be cooling after the ADP private payroll numbers came in at 89,000, way below the expectations for 160,000. The August ADP numbers were revised higher to 180,000.
Stocks also got a boost as Treasury yields finally stopped the surge higher that has taken the risk-free debt to levels not seen in 16 years. Yields were down across the curve, as bargain-seeking buyers were very active. The 10-year note closed at 4.74%, while the two-year paper was last seen at 5.05%. The spread between them has narrowed to its least inverted point in a year.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude were both pounded on Wednesday. Each of the major benchmarks closed down over 5%. Brent finished the session at $86.00, while WTI was last seen trading at $84.22. This is despite a 2.2 million barrel inventory build and confirmation that OPEC+ would maintain its production cuts. A build in gasoline inventory and plain old profit raking were cited for the oil weakness. Natural gas had a solid day, closing up over 1% at $2.96.
Gold continued its downward spiral Wednesday, as the December contract closed down 0.33% at $1,835.40. Despite some dollar weakness and lower bond yields, the sellers continued to hold serve. Some reasonably positive economic data also help to spur the selling. Bitcoin, which has been crushed, was modestly higher, finishing the session up 1.09% at $27,727.40.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each weekday 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, October 5, 2023.
America Movil SAB de C.V. (NYSE: AMX): UBS upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral but trimmed its $25 target price to $22. The consensus target is $4021.22. The shares closed on Wednesday at $16.89.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating with a $2,225 target price. The consensus target is $2,176.10, and the closing share price on Wednesday was $1,857.99.
Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating with a $458 target price. The consensus target is $446.15. Wednesday’s close was at $377.00.
DT Midstream Inc. (NYSE: DTM): Stifel initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $60 target price. The consensus target is $56.88, and Wednesday’s close was at $52.20.
Fiverr International Ltd. (NYSE: FVRR): UBS initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $33 price target. The consensus target is up at $42.44. The stock close almost 3% higher on Wednesday at $24.75 after the coverage.
Fluor Corp. (NYSE: FLR): As UBS upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral, its $35 target price increased to $47. The consensus target is $40.00. The shares closed on Wednesday at $35.46.
Hippo Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HIPO): Goldman Sachs slashed its $21 target price on the Neutral-rated stock to $10. The consensus target is $27.50. The stock closed at $7.22 on Wednesday.
Hub Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HUBG): Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to Outperform from Peer Perform. Its $98 target price compares with a consensus target of $95.92 and Wednesday’s $79.16 close.
Infosys Ltd. (NYSE: INFY): When J.P. Morgan upgraded the shares to Neutral from Underweight, the analyst bumped the $14 target price to $16.80. The consensus target is $17.95. Wednesday’s $17.44 close was up almost 3% for the day.
Life Time Group Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LTH): Wells Fargo’s upgrade was from Underweight to Equal Weight with a $17 target price. The consensus target is $22.80. Wednesday’s final trade was for $14.66 a share.
Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT): Jefferies reiterated a Hold rating but slashed its target price to $455 from $505. The consensus target is $499.35, while Wednesday’s close at $401.33.
LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB): Citigroup’s upgrade to Buy from Neutral included a target price bump to $106 from $104. That compares with a $102.40 consensus target and Wednesday’s closing print of $93.50.
Matson Inc. (NYSE: MATX): Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to Outperform from Peer Perform rating. The firm’s $113 target price is higher than the consensus target of $100. On Wednesday, shares closed at $88.91.
Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating with a $470 target price. The consensus target is $471.82, and Wednesday’s close was at $376.90.
Oddity Tech Ltd. (NYSE: ODD): Though BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold, it reduced the $60 target price to $37. The consensus target is $54.43. The shares closed down almost 8% on Wednesday at $27.10 despite other recent upgrades.
ON Semiconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: ON): Exane BNP Paribas downgraded the shares to Neutral from Outperform and has a $95 target price. The consensus target is $121.21. The stock closed at $89.99 on Wednesday.
PPL Corp. (NYSE: PPL): UBS cut its Buy rating to Neutral and its target price to $25 from $29. The consensus target is $29.92. Shares closed on Wednesday at $22.91.
24/7 Wall St.Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM): Truist Financial reiterated a Buy rating and has a $275 target price. The consensus target is $254.98. Wednesday’s close at $201.87.
Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ: RUN): Truist Financial downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy. It also cut its $30 target price to $12, well below the consensus target of $32.86. The shares closed on Wednesday at $10.54.
ZipRecruiter Inc. (NYSE: ZIP): UBS initiated coverage with a Neutral rating and a $13 price target. The consensus target is $16.75. The stock closed on Wednesday at $11.86.
Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Applied Digital, Emerson Electric, Gaming and Leisure Properties, HP, Otis Worldwide, QuantumScape, SunPower and Verizon Communications.
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