Investing
Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Akamai, Microsoft, Oracle, Procter & Gamble, Red Hat, Wynn Resorts and More
Published:
Last Updated:
Despite all eyes on the push to Dow Jones 20,000, the market took a breather yesterday, as slowly but surely, Wall Street is slowing down in anticipation of the Christmas holiday and the three-day weekend. The market holiday is actually on Monday, with Christmas this year falling on Sunday. The futures are flat this morning as traders and investors are thinking it may be time for some consolidation after the huge post-election rally.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each morning to find new trading and investing ideas for its readers. Some analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while others cover stocks to sell or avoid.
These are this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations.
Akamai Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) was started with a Buy rating at Guggenheim, and the firm has a $75 price target. The Wall Street consensus target is $67.58. The 52-week trading range for the shares is $39.43 to $71.04. The stock closed Wednesday at $67.87.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) was downgraded to Market Perform from Strong Buy at Raymond James. Its 52-week trading range is $38.60 to $52.71, and the consensus price objective is $42.37. The shares closed above that level Wednesday at $45.56, so this could be a valuation call.
Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) was started with a Buy rating at Aegis Capital. The 52-week range is $12.86 to $20, and the consensus price target is $19.56. The shares closed Wednesday at $15.57.
Microsoft Inc. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was started with a rating of Overweight at Piper Jaffray, and the company has an $80 price target. That compares with a Wall Street consensus target of $64.43. The stock closed Wednesday at $63.54, in a 52-week range is $48.04 to $63.80.
Oracle Corp. (NYSE: ORCL) was started with an Overweight rating at Mitsubishi UFJ with a $48 price target. The 52-week range is $33.13 to $42, and the consensus price target is $43.97. The shares closed yesterday at $38.83.
Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at SunTrust. The 52-week range is $74.46 to $90.33, and the consensus price target is $91.17. The shares closed at $84.28.
Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel. The 52-week range for the shares is $59.59 to $84.44. The consensus price objective is $89.33. The stock closed Wednesday at $79.79.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) was started with a Neutral rating at Aegis Capital. Its 52-week range is $49.94 to $109.50. The consensus price target is 98.38, The stock closed yesterday at $89.27.
Follow @Jonogg on Twitter to see daily analyst upgrades and downgrades and other key research items directly on your own feed.
Other key analysts upgrades and downgrades were seen in the following.
AMETEK Inc. (NYSE: AME) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Robert Baird, The firm also raised its price target to $57 from $47. The consensus target is $53.80. The 52-week range is $42.82 to $54.70. The stock closed yesterday at $49.30.
Brown-Forman Inc. (NYSE: BF-B) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at SunTrust. The 52-week range is $43.81 to $51.71. The consensus price target is $48.27. The stock closed at $45.34.
Cardiome Pharma Corp. (NASDAQ: CRME) was started with an Outperform rating at Leerink Partners. The 52-week range is $2.35 to $8.21. The consensus price target is $7.06. The stock closed at $2.70.
Columbia Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: CXP) was started with a rating of Hold at SunTrust. The 52-week range is $19.34 to $24.63. The SunTrust price objective is $21, while the consensus target is $23.60.
Flexion Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: FLXN) was started with a Strong Buy rating at Raymond James. The 52-week range is $7.56 to $23.87, and the consensus price objective is $35.86. The stock closed yesterday at $18.18.
Mammoth Energy Services Inc. (NASDAQ: TUSK) was started at Buy at Raymond James. Its 52-week range is $11.91 to $19.05. The consensus price objective is set at $18.40. The stock ended Wednesday at $15.46.
Power Integrations Inc. (NASDAQ: POWI) was started with a Buy rating at Drexel Hamilton. The consensus price target is posted at $71.50. The stock closed Wednesday at $67.65, in a 52-week range of$39.53 to $70.
Radware Ltd. (NASDAQ: RDWR) was started with a Buy rating at Jefferies with an $18.50 price objective. That compares with the consensus price target of $14.17. The 52-week range is $9.98 to $15.61, and the stock closed yesterday at $14.31.
Swift Transportation Co. (NYSE: SWFT) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Wells Fargo. The 52-week range is $11.74 to $27.48, and the consensus price target is $26.91. The stock closed at $24.48.
Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ZYNE) was started with an Overweight rating at Cantor Fitzgerald. The 52-week range for the shares is $4.64 to $21.56. The consensus price target is a whopping $30.83. The shares closed yesterday at $14.13.
In addition, Merrill Lynch has issued its top 11 stock picks for 2017.
In case you missed it, Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Baker Hughes, Bank of America, Barrick Gold, Citigroup, JetBlue, Morgan Stanley and many more.
Are You Still Paying With a Debit Card?
The average American spends $17,274 on debit cards a year, and it’s a HUGE mistake. First, debit cards don’t have the same fraud protections as credit cards. Once your money is gone, it’s gone. But more importantly you can actually get something back from this spending every time you swipe.
Issuers are handing out wild bonuses right now. With some you can earn up to 5% back on every purchase. That’s like getting a 5% discount on everything you buy!
Our top pick is kind of hard to imagine. Not only does it pay up to 5% back, it also includes a $200 cash back reward in the first six months, a 0% intro APR, and…. $0 annual fee. It’s quite literally free money for any one that uses a card regularly. Click here to learn more!
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings to provide 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.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.