Wall Street analysts have issued a series of upgrades and downgrades for various companies, with notable upgrades for Medtronic, Saia, Allegiant Travel, Stryker, and Brinker, and downgrades for Shopify, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Halliburton, Phillips 66, Lennar, D.R. Horton, and Wells Fargo, reflecting changing market sentiments and outlooks for 2026.
Wall Street's top analyst calls include a downgrade of DigitalBridge following SoftBank's acquisition offer, upgrades for BHP Group and several data security companies like Commvault, Rubrik, and Varonis, and new coverage initiations for Ero Copper and Terra Innovatum, reflecting diverse market movements and strategic shifts.
Wall Street analysts issued various research calls on Monday, with notable upgrades for Alphabet, Apple, Eli Lilly, Expedia, Paylocity, Sunrun, Teradata, AMD, Hasbro, Pfizer, and SPX Technologies, and downgrades for CarMax, HubSpot, JD.com. The market experienced a positive start amid ongoing earnings season and hopes for a government shutdown resolution, though tech stocks faced volatility. Oil, gold, and cryptocurrencies showed mixed performance, with gold reclaiming the $4,000 level and Bitcoin rebounding after a dip.
Wall Street's top analyst calls include notable upgrades for Apple, Hershey, Baidu, CoreWeave, Prologis, and Union Pacific, and downgrades for Warner Bros. Discovery, Live Nation, VF Corp., Camp4 Therapeutics, and Neumora Therapeutics, reflecting varying investor sentiments and market dynamics.
Apple's analyst sentiment has hit a five-year low following two downgrades, reflecting concerns over its product innovation and AI strategy, with the stock underperforming its tech peers despite a recent rally, and analysts maintaining a cautious outlook.
Wall Street's top analyst activity includes upgrades for Nvidia, Southwest, HCA Healthcare, Tenet Healthcare, Claritev, and Lamar Advertising, while downgrades include Salesforce, Starbucks, SentinelOne, Paramount, and GE Vernova, driven by earnings reports, strategic acquisitions, and market outlooks.
Wall Street analysts have upgraded Shopify to Buy, citing improved margins and growth, while Reddit was downgraded to Hold due to concerns about downside risks. Other notable upgrades include Datadog, Epam Systems, Cooper Companies, and Chegg. Downgrades were issued for Dollar Tree, Starbucks, Yum! Brands, General Mills, and Zscaler. New coverage was initiated for American Express, Cloudflare, Simulations Plus, Progyny, and Synchrony.
Wall Street analysts have upgraded Nike, Freeport-McMoRan, Outset Medical, Prestige Consumer, and Penn Entertainment, citing various positive factors. Conversely, Palantir, CME Group, Northrop Grumman, and Vasta Platform were downgraded due to concerns over valuation, competition, and sector challenges. New coverage was initiated for Palo Alto Networks, GE Vernova, Intchains Group, Marriott, and Viking Holdings, with mixed ratings based on industry outlooks and company performance.
Hershey Co. was downgraded by BNP Paribas Exane to neutral from outperform due to the surge in cocoa prices, which have more than doubled this year and hit a record high. The EU Deforestation Regulation is adding structural costs to the cocoa supply chain, leading to concerns that the inflation may be more long-term than previously thought. Analysts have reduced their earnings estimates for Hershey, and the company has indicated it will use various strategies, including price increases, to combat input inflation. Morgan Stanley also downgraded the stock, citing risks including the significant cocoa inflation.
Reddit users shared their opinions on technological "innovations" that they believe are actually downgrades, including appliances requiring apps, subscription services, software rentals, smart fridges, AI-enabled chat support, touchscreen controls in cars, streaming services, touch controls on dishwashers, automated paper towel dispensers, search engines, smart thermostats, laptops without DVD players, dark filming due to digital cameras, demise of flip phones, disappearance of phone charms, and the shift away from physical phone buttons.
Apple's stock has faced three downgrades in less than two weeks, with concerns about slowing iPhone sales and potential regulatory headwinds. Despite this, some analysts remain positive on the company, citing potential catalysts such as the upcoming launch of the Vision Pro spatial computing headset and expected resurgence in laptop and desktop sales. With the stock down roughly 4% in the first few days of 2024, the market is divided on Apple's future prospects.
Fisker's stock faced significant downgrades from Wall Street analysts, with Evercore ISI downgrading it to "In Line" and R.F. Lafferty adjusting its price target. The company's stock performance was impacted, with shares closing at $1.61 per share. Analysts expressed concerns about Fisker's execution, brand risk, capital raises, and dilution. However, R.F. Lafferty maintained a Buy rating and optimism about Fisker's potential. Fisker has started providing regular business updates to stakeholders, but followers are eagerly awaiting updates from Henrik Fisker himself. As Fisker navigates challenges and scrutiny, its strategic decisions will be crucial for its future success.
Hydrogen-related stocks, including Plug Power, Bloom Energy, and Nikola, experienced significant drops in their stock prices due to downgrades and higher interest rates. The cost of financing has increased, making it more difficult to fund projects related to hydrogen assets and hydrogen-powered vehicles. Analyst downgrades and rising interest rates have contributed to the decline. Additionally, NextEra Energy's reduced dividend growth expectations and financial challenges have raised concerns about the industry's future. Nikola, in particular, is facing financial difficulties, and the combination of falling stock prices and higher interest rates poses significant challenges for these companies. The hydrogen market is facing short-term financial pressures, potentially leading to reduced investment and pricing pressures. These companies need to achieve positive cash flow quickly to navigate the current situation.
Jim Cramer highlights the top 10 things to watch in the stock market on Thursday. Nvidia's blowout quarter and raised guidance propel the stock to a fresh all-time high, boosting the tech-heavy Nasdaq. Economic numbers show a drop in July durable goods orders and better-than-expected jobless claims. Splunk sees multiple price target hikes after beating earnings and revenue expectations. Estee Lauder faces downgrades, while Burlington Stores' earnings-per-share includes expenses related to taking over Bed Bath & Beyond leases. Dollar Tree lowers forward guidance, Foot Locker's financials suffer, and AMC Entertainment gets upgraded. Peloton continues to decline after wider-than-expected quarterly loss and guidance cuts.
S&P Global Ratings has downgraded five regional US banks and signaled a negative outlook for others due to the challenging lending environment. The downgraded banks include KeyCorp, Comerica Inc., Valley National Bancorp, UMB Financial Corp., and Associated Banc-Corp. This follows similar downgrades by Moody's two weeks ago. Regional banks have been facing higher interest rates on deposits and struggling to prevent deposit outflows, impacting their profitability. S&P cited factors such as declining deposits and a high proportion of commercial and uninsured deposits as reasons for the downgrades.