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Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: AutoNation, Celldex, EP Energy, Shopify, Sony, Urban Outfitters, Valeant and More

courtesy of Jon Ogg

Stocks were indicated to open lower on Tuesday, but this is on the heels of a three-week recovery rally. Now the S&P 500 is challenging 2,000 and the DJIA is challenging 17,000 again. Investors should be wondering if the theme of buying every dip is back in vogue. The first six weeks of 2016 was just a chance to sell into every rally, but the four-year trend before 2016 was to buy every single dip.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst reports each morning to find new investing and trading ideas for its readers. Some analyst reports cover stocks to buy, and other analyst calls cover stocks to sell or avoid.

These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday, March 8, 2016.

AutoNation Inc. (NYSE: AN) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral but the price target was raised to $49 from $47 (versus a $52.85 prior close) at Goldman Sachs. AutoNation has a consensus analyst price target of $59.38 and a 52-week trading range of $40.45 to $67.50.

Celldex Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: CLDX) was downgraded to Hold from Buy and the price target was slashed to $4 from $31 at Jefferies after its Rintega failure. This downgrade removes Rintega revenues and incorporates an increased risk discount on the remaining pipeline assets. Wedbush Securities downgraded Celldex to Neutral as well, slashing its target to $4 from $24.


EP Energy Corp. (NYSE: EPE) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse. The company saw its shares rise 74% to $6.84 on Monday on almost 10 times normal volume. Credit Suisse said that it sees incremental risks to the balance sheet. EP Energy’s 52-week range is $1.60 to $15.80.

Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP) was raised to Overweight from Sector Weight with a $35 price target (versus a $25.87 close) at Pacific Crest. Shopify has a consensus analyst target of $30.63 and a 52-week range of $17.00 to $42.13.

Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) was reinstated as Buy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Its ¥4,400 price objective overseas represents some 70% or so upside. The upgrade is based on earnings growth, driven by game and music streaming and expectations of increased shareholder returns. Sony American depositary shares closed at $23.22 and the 52-week range is $19.90 to $32.95.

Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) Urban Outfitters was reiterated as Buy at Merrill Lynch and the price objective was raised to $36 from $30. It was reiterated as Neutral but the price target was raised to $30 from $20 at Mizuho. RBC Capital Markets maintained its Sector Perform rating but raised its price target to $30 from $25.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. (NYSE: VRX) was maintained as Neutral but the price target was slashed to $70 from $112 at Mizuho. Shares rose 7% to $65.66 on Monday, but the 52-week range is $59.87 to $263.81.

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Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades from this Tuesday were in shares of the following companies:
Amicus Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: FOLD) was raised to Buy with a fair value estimate of $12.00 (versus an $8.24 close) at Janney Capital Markets. The firm said that it still is not sure where the FDA shakes out with migalastat in Fabry’s, but EU approval looks likely.

Bonanza Creek Energy Inc. (NYSE: BCEI) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse, with the firm noting risk to the balance sheet. The shares rose 42% to $3.01 on Monday.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE: BMO) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Boston Beer Co. Inc. (NYSE: SAM) was downgraded to Underperform from Outperform at CLSA. Citigroup started it at Sell with a $186 price target (versus a $199.48 close).

Enbridge Inc. (NYSE: ENB) was reinstated as Neutral at Credit Suisse, just a day after it was started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) was reiterated as Buy but the price objective was raised to $164 from $146 at Merrill Lynch. The firm sees the TNT acquisition likely to close in the first half of 2016 and said the EPS benefits may be limited near term.


Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight and the price target was raised to $250 from $204 (versus a $215.32 close) at Morgan Stanley.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) was maintained as Buy but the price target was lowered to $42.00 from $45.00 at Jefferies.

Taylor Morrison Home Corp. (NYSE: TMHC) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

If you missed Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades, they included Enbridge, Micron Technology, Sun Life Financial, Starbucks, Stratasys, Wynn Resorts and over a dozen other companies.

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