Pre-Market Stock Futures:
Futures are trading lower as we prepare to end another up-and-down week, and, as we mentioned before, it all depends on the status of the war with Iran and the price of oil on any given day. Those two items have dictated the direction of stocks, bonds, precious metals, and crypto since the war started. All of the major indices finished deep in the red, with the Nasdaq getting absolutely pounded, closing down 2.38% at 21,408, while the S&P 500 finished the session down 1.74% at 6,477. The small-cap Russell 2000 closed Thursday at 2,491, down 1.75%. The venerable Dow Jones Industrials held up the best, closing down 1.01% at 45,960. Selling accelerated into the close, and with the first quarter ending soon, this could get ugly for the next few sessions.
Treasury Bonds:
Sellers showed up right on cue for the Treasury bond market, just like they have every other day when stocks trade down recently. Worries over rising inflation and the potential for the Federal Reserve to raise rates later this year have encouraged sellers. The 30-year bond finished trading Thursday at 4.94%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.42%. With hopes for a ceasefire receding, we could be in for a tough stretch.
Oil and Gas:
Needless to say, prices across the energy complex rose on Thursday as all the issues we mentioned above came into play. While the President said Iran allowed 10 tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, the reality is that when 20% of the world’s oil supply passes through a contested point and is slowed to a crawl, prices will remain higher. Brent Crude closed Thursday at $107.50, up 5.21%, while West Texas Intermediate closed at $94.44, up 4.56%. Natural gas closed at $2.97, up 0.71%.
Gold:
As expected, and discussed ad nauseam, the precious metals, equity, debt, and the crypto silos all joined in lockstep to sell off in a big way on Thursday. We noted earlier this week that gold had traded lower for nine straight sessions before finally breaking the streak on Tuesday. It may have started a new one on Thursday, with Gold closing the day down 2.79% at $4,379, while Silver finished the day down 4.29% at $68.08.
Crypto:
Cryptocurrency markets fell sharply on Thursday as Bitcoin slipped below $70,000, with the broader digital asset market caught in a broader sell-off. The pullback came as surging oil prices and declining U.S. stock futures pushed investors away from riskier assets, while geopolitical tensions added to the cautious mood. At AM, Bitcoin traded at $66,680, while Ethereum traded at $1,995.
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 Friday, March 27, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Argan Inc. (NYSE: AGX) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which lifted the target price for the shares to $550 from $370.
- Brown-Forman Corporation (NYSE: BF-B) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan, which bumped the target price for the spirits giant to $27 from $25.
- Chord Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CHRD) was raised to Overweight from Neutral at Morgan Stanley, which boosted the target price for the shares to $168 from $114.
- Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE: KNX) was upgraded to Outperform from In line at Evercore ISI, which nudged the target price for the trucking giant to $65 from $61.
- Teleflex Incorporated (NYSE: TFX) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Raymond James, with a $128 target price objective.
Downgrades:
- Masimo Corp. (NASDAQ: MASI) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James. The shares are trading near the $180 level, where the company is being acquired.
- Terns Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: TERN) was downgraded to Market Perform from Overweight at BMO Capital, with a $53 target price.
- Upstream Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ: UPB) was downgraded to In line from Outperform at Evercore ISI, which slashed the target price for the stock to $15 from $40.
- Wix.com Ltd. (NASDAQ: WIX) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which cut the target price for the stock to $91 from $114.
Initiations:
- Emerson Electric Company (NYSE: EMR) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at BMO Capital, which has a $150 target price for the stock.
- FuboTV Inc. (NYSE: FUBO) was initiated with a Buy rating at B. Reilly, with an $18 target price.
- Genmab A/S (NASDAQ: GMAB) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Wolfe Research, with a $32 target price.
- Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON | HON Price Prediction) was initiated with an Overweight rating at BMO Capital with a $273 target price.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TM) was started with a Buy rating at DZ Bank, which has set a $610 target price for the shares.
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