Investing
Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Alphabet, Amazon, Bristol-Myers, CBS, Check Point, CSX, Facebook, PayPal and Many More
Published:
Last Updated:
Stocks may have pulled back from the start of the year and may be off their highs, but the theme around the post-election rally continues to give investors hope for better prices ahead. Stocks were higher on Friday morning just hours before Donald Trump’s inauguration. Now the real work and effort will have to be seen, and if one trend seems likely it is that both sides of the political aisle will fight each other in Washington, D.C.
Investors have proven over and over that they want to keep buying any real pullback. The fact that this bull market is now almost eight years old and that valuations remain high has not mattered. There is still a clear path to DJIA 21,422 by late 2017 or early 2018.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst reports each day of the week. The goal is to find new investing and trading ideas for our readers. Some of these analyst research reports cover stocks to buy, while others cover stocks to sell or to avoid. We have included some color where appropriate, and Thomson Reuters was used for consensus analyst price target data.
These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Friday:
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL) was started with an Overweight rating and assigned a $1,030 price target (versus an $824.37 close) at Pacific Crest. Alphabet has a consensus analyst price target of $965.81 and a 52-week range of $672.66 to $839.00.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) was started with a Buy rating and assigned a $953 price target (versus an $809.04 close) at Aegis. Amazon has a 52-week range of $474.00 to $847.21 and a consensus analyst price target of $928.53.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen. Shares have a 52-week range of $49.03 to $77.12 and a consensus analyst price target of $62.34. Bristol-Myers Squibb shares were last seen down about 7.5% at $51.27 on Friday on news that the company will not pursue an accelerated approval for a lung cancer combination treatment.
CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX) was downgraded to Hold from Buy with a $42 price target (versus a $45.51 prior close) at Deutsche Bank. CSX has a 52-week range of $21.64 to $45.61 and has a consensus analyst price target of $39.08. One of the issues here is valuation because CSX rose 23% the prior day, and the good news from consolidation and activists may have been reflected overnight.
Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) was started with an Overweight rating assigned a $150 price target (versus a $127.55 close) at Pacific Crest. Facebook’s consensus price target is $153.67 and its 52-week range is $94.23 to $133.50.
PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) was started with an Outperform rating and assigned a $54 price target (versus a $41.27 close) at Wedbush Securities. PayPal has a 52-week range of $31.35 to $44.52 and a consensus analyst price target of $46.60.
CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) was reinstated as Outperform with a $75 price target (versus a $62.63 close) at Credit Suisse. CBS has a 52-week range of $41.36 to $66.88 and a consensus analyst price target of $67.38.
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $115 price target (versus a $96.34 close) at JPMorgan. Check Point has a 52-week range of $73.28 to $97.92 and a consensus analyst price target of $93.90.
International Paper Co. (NYSE: IP) was raised to Buy from Hold and the price target was raised to $65 from $55 (versus a $52.68 closing price) at Jefferies. International Paper has a 52-week range of $32.50 to $54.68 and a consensus analyst price target of $53.00.
You can follow @Jonogg on Twitter if you would analyst calls and research summaries posted directly to your own feed.
Thursday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Apple, Netflix, Nike, Tesla, Coca-Cola, Comcast, CSX and over a dozen more.
Credit Card Companies Are Doing Something Nuts
Credit card companies are at war. The biggest issuers are handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers.
It’s possible to find cards paying 1.5%, 2%, and even 5% cash back today. That’s free money for qualified borrowers, and the type of thing that would be crazy to pass up. Those rewards can add up to thousands of dollars every year in free money, and include other benefits as well.
We’ve assembled some of the best credit cards for users today. Or you can jump straight to our top pick today which pays up to 5% cash back, a $200 bonus on top, and $0 annual fee. Click here to apply before they stop offering rewards this generous.
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.
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.