Pre-Market Stock Futures:
Futures are trading lower as investors and traders return from the three-day holiday break, after a wild week that saw just about everything. The catalyst on Friday was that the January consumer price index data came in below estimates at 2.4%. While anyone buying beef recently would dispute that inflation is lower, the trend is in the right direction, which could pave the way for additional rate cuts, though perhaps not until the summer. The Dow Jones Industrials closed at 49,500, up 0.10%, and the S&P 500 finished at 6,836, up just 0.05%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed lower on Friday at 22,546, down 0.22%, as the rotation out of technology continued. The small-cap Russell 2000 was the big winner on the day. Closing the sessions at 2,646, up 1.18%.
Treasury Bonds:
Yields were mostly lower across the Treasury curve as the surprising CPI report provided some much-needed support for the narrative that the Fed will cut rates. Kevin Warsh, who is likely to be the next Fed Chairman, has been notably inflation-sensitive when it comes to policy, so the report on Friday lends a hand. One thing is for sure: Mr. Warsh will likely need a few months of headline inflation and a lower core rate like January before another cut. The 30-year-long bond closed Friday at 4.69%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.05%.
Oil and Gas:
Energy continued its back-and-forth moves that have become a signature of the energy sector amid geopolitical tensions with Iran and Russia. Brent Crude closed Friday’s session at $67.68, up 0.24%, while West Texas Intermediate closed at $62.89, up 0.08% on the day. Natural gas also finished the week higher, closing at $3.24, up 0.81%. One worrisome item that hit the tape Friday was that OPEC+ was considering a return to the production hikes they had in place last year, which were suspended for the first quarter. With oversupply an ongoing issue, this could be a worrisome sign.
Gold:
Gold had a solid bounce back on Friday, no doubt influenced by the positive CPI print. After closing below $5,000 on Thursday, the bullion traded up 2.45% to finish Friday at $5,045. Analysts warned that volatility in Gold and Silver is not over, but reclaiming the $5,000 level is positive from a technical standpoint. Silver had a solid day as well, closing up 2.83% at $77.32.
Crypto:
The cryptocurrency market rewarded traders and investors with another volatile session on Friday, producing a sharp rebound after significant early-week losses, with Bitcoin (BTC) hovering around $67,000 to $68,000. After falling to a broad low range of $60,000–$65,000 on Thursday, Bitcoin rebounded on Friday, attempting to regain its footing. At 8 AM EST, Bitcoin is trading at $68,096, while Ethereum is quoted at $1,974. Both were up close to 5% on Friday.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports daily to identify new investment ideas for both investors and traders. 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.
Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Albemarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB | ALB Price Prediction) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America, which lifted the target price for the shares to $190 from $167.
- Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Melius Research, with a $205 price target.
- Shopify Inc. (NASDAQ: SHOP) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist, which raised the target price on the stock to $150 from $110.
- Southwest Airlines Company (NYSE: LUV) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS, which raised the target price for the low-cost carrier to $73 from $51.
- Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Freedom Capital, which lowered the target price for the credit card giant to $410 from $470.
Downgrades:
- ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Roth Capital, with a $112 target price.
- Dollar General Inc. (NYSE: DG) was cut to Sell from Neutral at Rothschild & Co. Redburn, with a $111 target price.
- Eldorado Gold Corp. (NYSE: EGO) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC, which nudged the price target for the stock to $48 from $47.
- Eagle Materials Inc (NYSE: EXP) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which trimmed the target price for the shares to $215 from $230.
- Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (NYSE: WBD) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Rothschild & Co. Redburn, which bumped the target price for the stock to $31 from $28.
Initiations:
- BitGo Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BTGO) was started with a Buy rating at Deutsche Bank and a $17 target price. Clear Street initiated coverage of the stock with a Buy rating and a $18 target price. The stock was a new IPO in late January.
- Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) was reinstated with a Buy rating at Bank of America, with a $250 target price.
- Karooooo Ltd. (NASDAQ: KARO) was initiated with a Buy rating at Roth Capital with a $62 target price objective.
- S&P Global Inc. (NYSE: SPGI) was reinstated with a Buy rating at Bank of America with a $575 target price.
- Tempus AI Inc. (NASDAQ: TEM) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Baird, which has set a $59 target for the shares.
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