Pre-Market Stock Futures:
The futures are trading higher after a dreadful day across Wall Street, when all the major indices were pounded and ended deeply in the red. Skyrocketing oil prices, rising interest rates, the highest since 2025, worries of an extended war with Iran spreading over the Middle East, and a host of other issues conspired to send stocks plummeting at the open, and they never recovered. Solid earnings, combined with massive capital expenditures, were not the answer, and by the close, all the major indices were trading off the day’s lows. Once again, the Nasdaq was the biggest loser, dropping 2.15% to finish at 25,137, while the S&P 500 finished the session at 7,408, down 1.48%. The Dow Jones Industrials closed at 51,711, down 0.97%, and the small-cap-heavy Russell 2000 fared the best, closing at 2,933, down 0.88%. With second-quarter earnings results pouring in, companies that miss expectations can count on being taken to the proverbial woodshed.
Treasury Bonds:
The song remains the same for the Treasury complex, as yields soared again on Thursday amid surging oil prices, ongoing Middle East worries, and inflation, all setting the table for more selling. When the last trade was posted, the 30-year long bond ended the session at 5.17%, while the 10-year note closed at 4.70%.
Oil and Gas:
The major oil benchmarks continue their relentless move higher, and some feel that, given the current start of negotiations with Iran, the Houthis are pressuring Red Sea oil shipments, and that growing concern about overall supply could make an already bad situation really ugly fast. Brent Crude closed Thursday at $99.86, up 6.15%, while West Texas Intermediate was last seen at $91.57, up 5.46%. Natural gas closed lower at $2.92, down 0.34%.
Gold:
Surprisingly, given the overall negative sentiment and decline in stocks and bonds, Gold closed Thursday lower. Traders and sector analysts cited the stronger U.S. dollar, surging oil prices that are fanning inflation, and worries about an interest rate hike, which could come as soon as September. Gold closed Thursday at $4,048, down 1.95%, while Silver closed at $57.42, down 3.46%.
Crypto:
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports every day to identify fresh investment ideas for investors and traders alike. These daily analyst notes include recommendations on stocks to buy, sell, or avoid, as well as new coverage initiations. I would like to remind you that no single analyst report should ever be the sole basis for buying or selling a stock.
Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Friday July, 24, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE: CLF | CLF Price Prediction) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform by BNP Paribas, with an $11.50 target price.
- Digital Realty Trust (NYSE: DLR) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at TD Cowen, which has a $222 target price objective.
- Dover (NYSE: DOV) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital, which trimmed the target price for the stock to $240 from $255.
- PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ: PYPL) was upgraded to Hold from Sell at Truist Securities, which raised the target price for the shares to $57 from $44.
- Progressive (NYSE: PRG) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley, which raised the price target to $210 from $190.
Downgrades:
- Albertsons Companies (NYSE: ACI) was cut to Market Perform from Outperform at Telsey Advisory, which slashed the target price for the grocery giant to $13 from $22.
- Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ: CAKE) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Mizuho, which lifted the target price for the shares to $85 from $75.
- Flywire (NASDAQ: FLYW) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Truist Securities, which trimmed the target price for the stock to $17 from $18.
- Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley, which lifted the target price for the stock to $210 from $190.
- Tenable Holdings (NASDAQ: TENB) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS, with a $37 target price objective.
Initiations:
- Blue Owl Capital (NYSE: OBDC) was started with a Buy rating at Lucid Capital, with a $13 target price.
- Chime Financial (NASDAQ: CHYM) was initiated with a Buy rating at Freedom Capital, with a $26 target price.
- Shattuck Labs (NASDAQ: STTK) was initiated with an Overweight rating at JPMorgan, with a $10 target price.
- Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ: SPCX) was started with a Hold rating at HSBC, with a $115 target price.
- SunocoCorp (NYSE: SUNC) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Mizuho, which has an $83 target price.
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