Pre-Market Stock Futures:
The futures are trading flat after a big follow-through rally on Wednesday, which fed off the big gains generated on Tuesday. The big news after the closing bell was the Nvidia earnings release. While they once again blew out the numbers, Wall Street initially didn’t take it as a sign for a massive rally. All of the major indices finished higher once again on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq leading the way, closing up 1.26% at 23,152, while the S&P 500 closed at 6,946, up 0.81%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was last seen at 49,482, up 0.63%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 closed at 2,663, up 0.41%. With fourth-quarter earnings all but complete and big market-moving events like Nvidia’s earnings report out of the way, traders will focus on economic data and chatter from Fed governors for the next few weeks.
Treasury Bonds:
Yields were mixed across the Treasury curve on Wednesday, as the potential for military action with Iran remains intact, though the President has stressed diplomacy. With a mixed bag of economic data hitting the tape over the last week, some good and some not so good, we appear to be in a holding pattern. One thing seems likely: a March rate cut seems out of the question right now. The 30-year bond closed at 4.70%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.05%.
Oil and Gas:
Oil was up on Wednesday as a headline was posted that Saudi Arabia was boosting oil production in anticipation of a U.S. attack on Iran. That was in addition to reports that OPEC+ is considering a modest increase in output and production in April. While oversupply remains the bearish argument, oil has held its ground above $60, which is very positive for many top companies. Brent Crude closed Wednesday at $70.85, up 0.11%, while West Texas Intermediate finished at $65.63, up 0.32%. Natural gas closed the session at $2.97, up 1.85%.
Gold:
Gold had a grind-it-out day, and while the bullion has continued to trudge higher, the going has been slow since breaking back above $5,000. With a layer of resistance at $5,200-$5,300, traders are looking for a solid breakout above that level, with some serious volume behind it to keep the long-running rally intact. The final print for Gold yesterday came in at $5,181, up 0.33%, while Silver ended the day flat after a strong session on Tuesday, closing at $89.03.
Crypto:
Cryptocurrency markets staged a strong, broad-based rally on Wednesday, rebounding in a big way after an extended period of intense selling pressure and “crypto winter” type conditions that have prevailed since the start of the year. One thing has become very obvious: cryptocurrencies, and especially Bitcoin, are correlated with risk asset movements, either up or down. Bitcoin rose back above $69,000, gaining over 7% at one point to snap a three-session losing streak. By midday, it was hovering in a wide range between $66,000 and $69,000, reversing a drop to $62,500 on Tuesday. At 8 AM EST, Bitcoin traded at $68,180, while Ethereum traded at $2,069.
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 Thursday, February 26, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Alcon Inc. (NYSE: ALC) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo, with a $97 target price.
- Joby Aviation Inc. (NYSE: JOBY) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at H.C. Wainwright, which has an $18 target price.
- Shoe Carnival Inc. (NASDAQ: SCVL) was raised to Buy from Hold at Williams Trading with a $22 target price.
- Spotify Technology SA (NYSE: SPOT) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Arete with a $586 target price.
- U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) was raised to Buy from Hold at Truist, which bumped the target price for the stock to $66 from $61.
Downgrades:
- First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank. which lowered the target price for the stock to $245 from $300.
- Merit Medical SystemsInc. (NASDAQ: MMSI) was cut to Equal Weight from Overweight at Wells Fargo, which lowered the target price to $78 from $95.
- Oddity Tech Ltd. (NASDAQ: ODD) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan, which slashed the target price for the shares to $16 from $59.
- Southern Copper Corp. (NYSE: SCCO) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Bank of America, which raised the target price for the stock to $175 from $162.
- Trade Desk Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at New Street with a $17 target price.
Initiations:
- Elkon Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ELKN) was initated with an Underperform rating at Wedbush, whicj has a $7 target price for the shares.
- Five Below Inc. (NASDAQ: FIVE) was initiated with an Outperform rating at KGI Securities, which set a $257 target price.
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