Pre-Market Stock Futures:
Futures are trading higher after a big risk-off Thursday, as all major indices closed lower. Higher interest rates and oil did the trick once again as Treasury Secretary Bessent’s effort to curb rising rates by buying the long end of the Treasury market fell flat. When the final bell rang, the small-cap heavy Russell 2000 was bludgeoned to the tune of down 1.36% to close at 2,991, while the legacy Dow Jones Industrials was not far behind, falling 1.31% to end the session at 52,762. Retail giant Walmart (NYSE: WMT | WMT Price Prediction), a member of the index, fell almost 10% after posting solid results but a very disappointing forward sales outlook. The tech-heavy Nasdaq finished the day at 26,067, down 1%, while the S&P 500 closed at 7,641, down 0.87%.
Treasury Bonds:
Well, so much for the Treasury Department buying bonds. Mr. Bessent’s gambit looked smart yesterday, but the bond vigilantes didn’t buy it, and sellers returned on Thursday and wiped out most of Wednesday’s gains. When the final bell rang, the 30-year bond finished the day at 5.25%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at a 4.70% yield.
Oil and Gas:
Once again, as it has been every day this week, the energy complex traded higher, as the song remains the song. The geopolitical mess in the Middle East, compounded by rising rates, continues to drive the two major benchmarks higher. When 4 PM EDT rolled around and the final trades hit the tape, Brent Crude closed at $93.54, up over 2%, while West Texas Intermediate closed at $86.60, up 2.62%. Natural gas, for the first time this week, did not follow the leaders and closed the day at $2.76, down 1.95%.
Gold:
After a strong week for the precious metals, sellers took advantage of the recent strength in the bullion, and Gold closed Thursday at $4,520, down 1.40%. Silver bucked the trend and closed the session at $68.01, up 1.68%. Gold closed lower after a big Wednesday move in which it traded 4% higher, while analysts cited silver’s use as an industrial metal as a tailwind yesterday, and closed the day at $67.97, up 1.62%
Crypto:
Cryptocurrencies surged higher on Thursday as Bitcoin blew past $72,000. The rally was driven by the U.S. Treasury’s bond buyback announcement, a surge of short liquidations, and rising political support for the crypto-focused Clarity Act. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin traded at $76,874, while Ethereum was quoted at $2,374.
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. Important reminder: 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, August 21, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Equifax (NYSE: EFX) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Rothschild & Co Redburn, which raised the price target for the shares to $235 from $214.
- O-I Glass (NYSE: OI) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup, with a $9 target price.
- Portland General Electric Company (NYSE: POR) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo, which moved the price target to $58 from $51.
- Taylor Devices (NASDAQ: TAYD) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Freedom Broker, which bumped the target price to $70 from $67.
- Ternium (NYSE: TX) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley, which lifted the target price to $65 from $55.
Downgrades:
- Bowman Consulting (NASDAQ: BWMN) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which nudged the price target up to $43 from $40.
- Limbach Holdings (NYSE: LMB) was cut to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which lowered the target price to $50 from $60.
- Teradyne (NYSE: TER) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Baird, with a $420 target price.
- Frontline (NYSE: FRO) was cut to Sell from Hold at Danske Bank with a $39.15 target price.
- Weibo (NYSE: WB) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup, with a $7.80 target price.
Initiations:
- Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) was initiated with an Overweight rating at BMO Capital, with a $455 target price.
- Hubbell (NYSE: HUBB) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Baird, which has a $555 target price objective for the stock.
- Marvel Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL) was started with an Outperform rating at BMO Capital, with a $250 price target.
- NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) was initiated with an Outperform rating at BMO Capital, with a $340 target price objective for the chip giant.
- Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ: SPCX) was started with a Sell rating at DZ Bank, which has a $100 target price.
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