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Here Are Monday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Ameriprise Financial, Boyd Gaming, CoreWeave, Datadog, Intel, JetBlue Airways, PayPal Holdings, Pinterest, Whirlpool, and More

Wall Street analysts delivered a dramatic split verdict Monday, slashing targets on financial and consumer names while placing bold bullish bets on AI infrastructure and cloud players. Find out which stocks got the biggest upgrades and which faced brutal double…

By Lee Jackson
Published October 19, 2026, 10:12am ET · 4 min read

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Stock Futures:

Stocks are trading mixed, with the Nasdaq up sharply as we start another action-packed trading week, driven by a flood of third-quarter earnings from some of the biggest U.S. companies. All major indices finished Friday lower as selling pressure built throughout the day. The usual suspects were to blame: rising energy prices, inflation concerns after the CPI and PPI came in hotter than expected last week, and, lastly, the massive rotation out of AI-related technology stocks. When the dust settled Friday, the Nasdaq was the biggest loser, falling 2.15% to 26,140 and marking its worst week since June, while the small-cap Russell 2000 closed at 2,721, down 1.66%. The S&P 500 also posted its worst week since June, closing at 7,659, down 1.09%, while the Dow Jones Industrials fared best, closing at 52,002, down 0.34%.  Mega-cap technology stocks have made it look like all is well, but we could be on the verge of one of the biggest pullbacks since 2008-2009.

Treasury Bonds:

After a roller-coaster week for bonds, including one of the biggest rallies in years, Monday brought more of the same. Yields fell across the curve as buyers kept loading up on some of the highest-yielding U.S. sovereign debt in years. The 30-year bond closed Friday at 5.43%, while the benchmark 10-year closed at 5.08%. 

Oil and Gas:

Prices were higher across the energy complex as geopolitical chaos flares up, shipping lanes come under attack, and short-term supply relief looks nonexistent. Iran has been launching missile and drone strikes at commercial tankers in the critical Strait of Hormuz. As a result, daily oil flows through the strait plummeted from a normal 17.15 million barrels to just 11.62 million barrels this week. Unsurprisingly, shipping rates and insurance premiums are skyrocketing. By the close, Brent Crude stood at $109.90, up 3.72%, while West Texas Intermediate was last seen at $101.40, up 3.51%. Natural gas was the biggest loser, down 3.71% to $3.12. 

Gold:

After a solid week for precious metals, Gold was basically flat on the day, as many investors were content to head into the weekend and see how geopolitical issues play out before making big commitments. Gold closed at $4,164, down just 0.12%, while Silver ended the session at $57.12, down 0.43%. 

Crypto:

Crypto traders got a split decision on Friday as Bitcoin held its ground while the rest of the market sold off. The backdrop was the usual: heightened global inflation fears and a brutal day for equities. When the dust settled, Bitcoin (BTC) had climbed roughly 1.7% to trade near $82,162, but the strength never spread beyond the top name. The total crypto market cap fell 2.16% as altcoins took the brunt of the selling, with Bitcoin Cash among the biggest losers, plunging more than 6%. Bitcoin may make it look like all is well, but the rest of the market tells a very different story. At 10 AM EDT, Bitcoin traded at 82,091, and Ethereum was quoted at $2,402.


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, October 19, 2026. 

 

Upgrades:

  • Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD | BYD Price Prediction) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley, which trimmed the target price to $83 from $89.
  • CoreWeave (NASDAQ: CRWV) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman Sachs, with a $106 target price.
  • Datadog (NASDAQ: DDOG) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Bernstein, which lifted the target price in a big way to $350 from $237.
  • Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan, with an unchanged $85 target price.
  • JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS, with a $3.50 price target down from $4.

Downgrades:

  • Ameriprise Financial (NYSE: AMP) was double downgraded to Underperform from Buy at Bank of America, and the target price was slashed to $445 from $570.
  • LCI Industries (NASDAQ: LCII) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel, which slashed the target price to $80 from $130.
  • Newmark Group (NASDAQ: NMRK) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Piper Sandler with a $13 target price.
  • PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ: PYPL) was cut to Underperform from Neutral at Cleveland Research, without a target price.
  • Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Longbow, without a target price.

Initiations:

  • Azul (NYSE: AZUL) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Goldman Sachs, which has an $8.10 target price.
  • Maze Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MAZE) was started with a Buy rating at Canaccord, with a $75 target price.
  • Pinterest (NASDAQ: PINS) was initiated with a Buy rating at Phillip Securities, with a $30 target price. 
  • Resideo Technologies (NASDAQ: REZI) was started with an Outperform rating at Citizensm, with a $22 price target.
  • Rush Street Interactive (NYSE: RSI) was started with an Equal Weight rating at Morgan Stanley, which has a $22 target.

 

 

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Lee Jackson

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.

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