Investing
Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Baidu, Caterpillar, GE, Honeywell, Kimberly-Clark, Schlumberger, Southern Energy and More
Published:
Last Updated:
Stocks were trading lower on Monday ahead of this week’s slate of central bank meetings. Still, investors have clearly reverted back to the steady trend of buying pullbacks that prevailed from 2011 to 2015.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning of the week to find new investing and trading ideas. Some of these analyst reports cover stocks to buy, while other reports cover stocks to sell or avoid.
These are top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Monday morning:
Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) was reiterated as Buy and the price target was raised from $196 to $225 at Jefferies. The stock closed down 1% at $190.76 on Friday, it has a consensus analyst target price of $213.24 and it has a 52-week trading range of $100.00 to $223.95.
Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) was down 0.4% at $78.32 after earnings on Friday, but was indicated up 0.4% at $78.62 on Monday. RBC Capital Markets reiterated its Sector Perform rating but raised its price target to $70 from $68. Goldman Sachs raised its rating to Neutral from Sell. Caterpillar’s consensus price target was $64.22, and the 52-week range is $56.36 to $89.62.
Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) was reiterated as Buy and the price target was raised from $120 to $130 at Jefferies. Oppenheimer raised its price target to $128 from $120 in its call. RBC Capital Markets maintained its Outperform rating and raised its target to $122 from $121. Price target hikes were also seen from Barclays (to $126 from $122), Morgan Stanley (to $126 from $123) and by Stifel (to $129 from $127). Honeywell closed down 0.6% at $114.17 on Friday. It has a consensus analyst target of $121.55 and a 52-week range of $87.00 to $116.56.
Kimberly-Clark Corp. (NYSE: KMB) was downgraded to Hold from Buy and the price target was cut to $130 from $145 at Deutsche Bank. UBS maintained its Neutral rating but lowered its price target to $134 from $143. The stock closed down 3.7% at $$126.88 on Friday and was indicated down 0.7% at $125.96 on Monday. Its consensus analyst target was $139.92, and it has a 52-week range of $103.04 to $138.76.
Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) was reiterated as Hold and the price target was raised from $71 to $80 at Jefferies. Credit Suisse reiterated its Outperform and $80 target, saying that the bottom has been seen. Cowen reiterated its Outperform rating and raised the target price to $85 from $75.
Southwestern Energy Co. (NYSE: SWN) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen. Southwestern Energy closed at $12.27, has a consensus price target of $9.07 and has a 52-week range of $5.00 to $29.61.
You can follow @Jonogg to get the daily analyst calls and market reports directly on your Twitter feed.
Other key analyst upgrades and downgrades were seen in the following:
Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) was started as Overweight with a $62 price target (versus a $56.76 prior close) at JPMorgan.
CDW Corp. (NASDAQ: CDW) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James.
Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) was reiterated as Buy and the price target was raised to $36 from $33 at Jefferies.
Discovery Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA) was downgraded to Hold from Buy and the price target was cut to $31 from $37 (versus a $28.80 close) at Topeka Capital Markets.
GlaxoSmithKline PLC (NYSE: GSK) was reiterated as Buy at Merrill Lynch going into earnings, noting double-digit earnings per share growth and in favor of a 5% dividend yield.
International Paper Co. (NYSE: IP) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital Markets.
Medtronic Inc. (NYSE: MDT) was started as Buy with a $93 price target (versus a $78.99 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.
MercadoLibre Inc. (NASDAQ: MELI) was started as Market Perform with a $120 price target (versus a $126.41 close) at Cowen.
Public Storage (NYSE: PSA) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral with a $244 price target (versus a $256.94 close) at Goldman Sachs.
PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond James.
Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) was reiterated as Buy with a $50 price objective (versus a $45.74 close) at Merrill Lynch. Republic is the firm’s preferred pick in waste management.
Tenaris S.A. (NYSE: TS) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at BB&T Capital Markets.
Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WMI) was started as Neutral (prior analyst rating was Buy) with a $60 price objective (versus a $56.39 close) at Merrill Lynch.
Friday’s key analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, Five Below, Ericsson, United Rentals and over a dozen more.
A financial advisor can help you understand the advantages and disadvantages of investment properties. Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
Investing in real estate can diversify your portfolio. But expanding your horizons may add additional costs. If you’re an investor looking to minimize expenses, consider checking out online brokerages. They often offer low investment fees, helping you maximize your profit.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.