Pre-Market Stock Futures:
The futures are trading higher as we get set to wrap up one of the wildest weeks on Wall Street in some time. Following a massive 1100-point DJIA sell-off, we got a Thursday snapback rally that made heads spin and erased much of the mid-week losses. Some big numbers from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) and encouraging economic data helped power a buying tailwind (and short covering) that got things going on the open, and they stayed in place all day. When the final bell rang, the big winner was the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which closed at 25,122, up 2.78%, while the S&P 500 finished the session up 1.66% at 7,437. The Dow Jones Industrials grabbed back a chunk of that 1,100-point loss, finishing at 52,209, up 1.19%, while the small-cap Russell 2000 was last seen at 2,947, up 1.40%.
Treasury Bonds:
The Treasury complex turned in a performance on Thursday that was very similar to Wednesday. Modest selling on the belly of the curve, with larger moves on the longer maturities, and buyers grabbing the T-bills. When the dust settled, the yield on the 30-year long bond was posted at 5.22%, while the benchmark 10-year note was priced at a 4.67% yield.
Oil and Gas:
Despite some escalation in the war with Iran, energy prices fell on Thursday after reports that cargo shipments through major waterways were still moving, helping alleviate some supply concerns. When the final bell rang, Brent Crude closed down 1.75% at $89.15, while West Texas Intermediate closed down 0.72% at $83.85. Natural gas was the sole winner in the energy space, closing up 0.92% at $2.75.
Gold:
For the second day running, Gold continued to trade higher, as published reports on Thursday indicated that China is buying every dip, as are other central banks around the world. U.S. dollar weakness, signs that inflation is moderating, and ongoing geopolitical issues related to the war all provided reasons for the bullion to trade higher. The final print for Gold was posted at $4,018, up 1.06%, while Silver finished the day at $59.03, up 2.61%.
Crypto:
Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Friday, July 31, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) was upgraded to Hold from Sell at DZ Bank, with a $16 target price.
- International Paper Company (NYSE: IP) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, which raised the target price to $50 from $39.
- Nextpower (NASDAQ: NXT) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at BMO Capital, with an unchanged $132 target price.
- Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ: PTEN) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan, which bumped the target price for the stock to $12 from $10.
- Saia (NASDAQ: SAIA) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Stifel, which trimmed the target price for the shares to $438 from $450.
Downgrades:
- Blackstone Mortgage (NYSE: BXMT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Keefe Bruyette & Woods, which dropped the price target to $16 from $20.
- Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus, without a target price.
- Edison International (NYSE: EIX) was cut to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays, which trimmed the target price for the utility to $75 from $78.
- GoDaddy (NYSE: GDDY) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at William Blair, without a price target.
- Roblox Corporation (NYSE: RBLX) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform by BMO Capital, which slashed the price target to $45 from $100.
Initiations:
- BBB Foods (NASDAQ: TBBB) was started with a Buy rating at Citigroup, with a $49 target price.
- Duos Technologies Group (NASDAQ: DUOT) was initiated with an Overweight rating at Cantor Fitzgerald, with a $26 target price.
- Faeth Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FTH) was started with an Outperform rating at Raymond James, which has a $56 target price objective.
- Heartflow (NASDAQ: HTFL) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Baird, with a $14 target.
- Sky Harbour Group (NYSE: SKYH) was initiated with a Buy rating at Roth Capital, with a $14 target price.
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