Here Are Monday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Applied Digital, Autodesk, Datadog, First Solar, L3Harris Technologies, PepsiCo, Roblox, Snowflake, TeraWulf and More
Wall Street analysts are making bold moves as the third quarter closes, with major calls hitting PepsiCo, Roblox, Snowflake, and a Bitcoin infrastructure stock carrying a price target that will turn heads.
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Pre-Market Stock Futures:
Futures are trading lower as we enter the final trading days of the third quarter, after a wild week in which interest rates soared and oil prices bounced back and forth. While all major indices closed higher on Friday, only two finished the week higher, and with the quarter ending, watch for volatility as portfolio managers reset for the last quarter of 2026. The Dow Jones Industrials led the way on Friday, finishing the session up 0.93% at 51,828, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq closed at 27,068, up 0.48%. The S&P 500 closed the week at 7,743, up 0.51%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 closed at 1,978, up 0.07%. With the third-quarter earnings reports right around the corner and expectations for a very positive season, possibly already baked in, investors need to tread carefully as the stock market is overbought, and everything is in place for a potentially sizeable sell-off.
Treasury Bonds:
Yields were mixed across the Treasury curve as the long end saw some selling, but much lighter than in recent weeks, while buyers took advantage of higher yields on the belly of the curve and focused on 2-year to 7-year maturities. At the close, the 30-year bond finished at 5.49%, while the benchmark 10-year note closed at 5.17%.
Oil and Gas:
The energy complex continued its two-steps-forward, one-step-back routine on Friday as both major benchmarks traded lower, with Brent Crude down 2.14% to $104.30 and West Texas Intermediate down 2.33% to $92.41. Natural gas also closed lower at $3.19, down3.06%. Iran’s offer to return to the bargaining table and open the Strait of Hormuz was a key factor pushing sellers. It was reported that President Trump has rejected the offer, and oil is moving higher on Monday.
Gold:
Gold finished the week modestly higher at $4,284, up 0.24%, while Silver was last seen at $64.17, up 0.70%. Gold buyers’ victory was that Friday’s positive close ended a 4-day losing streak for the bullion, but it still ended the week in the red. Rising interest rates were cited as the main reason for last week’s weakness.
Crypto:
A massive options expiration for Bitcoin on Friday was the big story from the cryptocurrency markets, as $15.6 billion in options contracts expired. Fundstrat’s Tom Lee remained bullish, and he likely will going forward, as prices held their ground into the weekend. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin was quoted at $83,140, while Ethereum was trading at $2,679.
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 from Monday, September 28, 2026.
Upgrades:
- First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR | FSLR Price Prediction) was upgraded to Sector Weight from Underweight at KeyBanc without a target price.
- Liberty Energy (NYSE: LBRT) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays, with a $27 target price.
- Park Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: PK) was raised to Strong Buy from Market Perform at Raymond James, with a $19 target price.
- Royal Caribbean Group (NYSE: RCL) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America, with a $330 target price.
- Teleflex (NYSE: TFX) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America, with a $158 target price, up from $145.
Downgrades:
- Acadia Healthcare Company (NASDAQ: ACHC) was cut to Outperform from Strong Buy at Raymond James, with an unchanged $39 target price objective.
- L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) was cut to Hold from Buy at Argus, without a target price.
- Pegasystems (NASDAQ: PEGA) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at DA Davidson, with an unchanged $32 target price.
- PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank, which lowered the target price for the consumer giant to $138 from $155.
- Roblox (NYSE: RBLX) was downgraded to Underperform from Hold at Jefferies, with an unchanged $38 target price.
Initiations:
- Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: APLD) was started with a Buy rating at Jones Trading with a massive $70 target price.
- Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) was assumed with an Overweight rating at Piper Sandler, which trimmed the target price to $300 from $338.
- Datadog (NASDAQ: DDOG) was initiated with a Buy rating at William O’Neil without a target price.
- Snowflake (NYSE: SNOW) was initiated with a Buy rating at Phillip Securities, which has set a $423 target price.
- TeraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF) was reinstated with a Buy rating at Jones Trading, with a $30 target price.
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Lee Jackson has covered Wall Street analysts' equity and debt research and equity strategy daily for 24/7 Wall St. since 2012. His broad, diverse career, including a stint as creative services director at an NBC affiliate in Austin, Texas, gives him unique insight into the financial industry.
Lee Jackson's journey in the financial industry spans more than 30 years, including nearly two decades as an institutional equity salesperson at Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and Morgan Stanley. His career spanned pivotal sell-side Wall Street events, from the dot-com rise and bubble to the Long-Term Capital Management debacle, 9/11, and the Great Recession of 2008. This reflects his resilience and adaptability amid market volatility.
Lee Jackson’s practical financial industry experience, gained through a career at some of the biggest banks and brokerage firms, is complemented by a lifetime of writing across various platforms. This unique combination allows him to shed light on the intricacies of Wall Street in a way only someone with deep insider experience and knowledge can. Moreover, his extensive network across Wall Street continues to provide direct access for him and 24/7 Wall St., a privilege few firms enjoy.
Since 2012, Jackson’s work for 24/7 Wall St. has been featured in Barron’s, Yahoo Finance, MarketWatch, Business Insider, TradingView, Real Money, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Benzinga, and other media outlets. He attended the prestigious Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and has a degree in broadcasting from the Specs Howard School of Media Arts.
