Pre-Market Stock Futures:
Futures are trading higher on Thursday after another wild day on Wall Street, during which the major indices moved in different directions. Another round of disturbing inflation data hit the tape as the Producer Price Index for April came in at 1.4%, the largest move higher in four years, while Producer prices rose by a stunning 6% year-on-year, the largest increase since December of 2022. Analysts cited the soaring cost of goods and services, with much of the increase driven by higher energy prices. When the smoke cleared on Wednesday, the Nasdaq roared higher by 1.32% to close the day at 26,440, up 1.35%, while the S&P 500 hit yet another all-time high and finished the session up 0.73% at 7,455. The small-cap heavy Russell 2000 eked out a gain, closing up 0.16% at 2,846. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the only index to finish the day lower, closing down 0.11% at 49,707.
Treasury Bonds:
While yields were mostly lower across the Treasury curve, sellers of the long end didn’t take too kindly to the inflation news. Many of the top banks on Wall Street, including Bank of America, have started reporting that, given current and expected inflation data, interest rate cuts may have to wait until the summer or fall of 2027. When it was all said and done, on Wednesday, the 30-year-long bond closed at 5.04%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.48%. The rising rate environment pushed mortgage rates to their highest level since March.
Oil and Gas:
One bright spot for investors and consumers on Wednesday was a drop in oil pricing across the energy complex. The drop came despite reports that U.S. gas and oil inventories continue to crash due to the conflict with Iran. Oil storage dropped by 4.3 million barrels for the week ending May 8th. Brent Crudue closed the session at $105.70, down 1.92%, while West Texas Intermediate dropped 1.058% to $101.10. Natural gas came out as a winner, ending trading at $2.86, up 0.58%.
Gold:
The precious metal arena, at least for Gold Wednesday, was essientially unchanged, but needless to say, the unsettling PPI report and the ongoing geopolitical issues in the Middle East remain front and center for investors. The last trade for Gold was reported at $4,691, up just 0.08%, while Silver, which has been on a tear, closed up 0.19% at $87.53.
Crypto:
The cryptocurrency markets experienced a volatile yet recovering trading session following a sharp dip below $79,000 for Bitcoin earlier in the day on Wednesday, amid hotter-than-expected US inflation data. The dip below the $79,000 level early in the day did bring in buyers. While Bitcoin is struggling at the $82,000 resistance level, should it break through there, there is potential for solid upside at 8 AM EDT. Bitcoin traded at $79,310, while Ethereum traded at $2,255.
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, May 14, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Commercial Metals (NYSE: CMC | CMC Price Prediction) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS, which raised the price target to $89 from $79.
- Compass Minerals International (NYSE: CMP) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan, which boosted the target price for the stock to $30 from $20.
- Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Daiwa, with a $155 target price.
- Lowe’s Companies (NYSE: LOW) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo, which lowered the target price for the big box retailer to $260 from $290.
- Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) was raised to Buy from Hold at TD Cowen, which moved the target price for the ubiquitous coffee retailer to $120 from $106.
Downgrades:
- Camden Property Trust (NYSE: CPT) was downgraded to Underperform from Sector Perform at Scotiabank, which has a $95 target price objective.
- Doximity (NYSE: DOCS) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, which hammered the price target to $19 from $51.
- Everpure (NYSE: P) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup, which keeps a $90 target price on the company.
- Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs, which slashed the target price for the appliance giant to $53 from $72.
- Wix.com (NASDAQ: WIX) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital, which sliced the target price for the shares to $60 from $90.
Initiations:
- Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ: ASO) was started with an Overweight rating at Stephens, which has a $78 target price for the shares.
- DraftKings (NASDAQ: DKNG) was initiated with an Underperform rating at BNP Paribas, which has a $20 target price.
- Flutter Entertainment (NYSE: FLUT) was initiated with an Underperform rating at BNP Paribas, which has an $80 target.
- Hut 8 (NASDAQ: HUT) was initiated with a Buy rating at Jefferies, with a $156 price target.
- TeraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF) was started with a Buy rating at Jefferies, which has a $28 target price objective.