Investing
Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Alcatel-Lucent, ADM, BofA, Chesapeake, Google, J.P. Morgan, MGM and More
Published:
Stocks were staging a second major bounce on Thursday after a big gain on Wednesday. Investors just keep proving over and over that they are buyers of stocks on weakness or which offer value and are overlooked by the market. 24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning of the week to find new investment and trading ideas for its readers. Some of these analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while other analyst reports cover sell or stocks to avoid.
Due to the raw number of analyst calls, most price target data was not included. These are this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls.
Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (NYSE: ALU) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital Markets.
Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
ALSO READ: Merrill Lynch Defensive but Has 6 Oil and Gas Stock Picks
There were many more analyst calls this Thursday morning as well. Below is another dozen and a half key analyst calls and the year-end price targets for the S&P 500 from this Thursday:
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ALNY) was started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.
Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.
The Andersons Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDE) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital Markets.
BioMarin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) was started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.
Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital Markets.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was started as Buy at Citigroup.
Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) was started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Dick’s Sporting Good Inc. (NYSE: DKS) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup.
Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.
Priceline Group Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel.
SAP A.G. (NYSE: SAP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS, but it was also reportedly raised to Buy at Evercore.
Vitamin Shoppe Inc. (NYSE: VSI) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
ALSO READ: Wells Fargo’s Top Biotech Stock Picks for 2015
WellCare Health Plans Inc. (NYSE: WCG) was downgraded to Underperform from Buy at Merrill Lynch.
Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) was started as Buy at Citigroup.
In case you missed Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades, they were in shares of ADP, American Express, Cigna, First Solar, Garmin, LINN Energy, Synchrony and a dozen or so more.
Here are the most recent S&P 500 targets for 2015 from the major brokerage firms:
Credit card companies are at war, handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers. A good cash back card can be worth thousands of dollars a year in free money, not to mention other perks like travel, insurance, and access to fancy lounges. See our top picks for the best credit cards today. You won’t want to miss some of these offers.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.