The futures traded higher Wednesday morning as the market started to look to the first-quarter earnings reports that are set to begin. Most of the pundits on Wall Street are fairly positive about the economy and how the top companies will do when reporting. One thing seems likely with the market still trading within reach of all-time highs: any company that misses estimates or gives poor forward guidance could be in trouble

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 Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations.

AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE: AZN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS. The 52-week trading range for the stock is $25.55 to $35.44, and the Wall Street consensus price target is $33.87. The shares closed trading on Tuesday at $31.28.

Blueprint Medicines Corp. (NASDAQ: BPMC) saw its price target raised to $50 from $43 at Wedbush. The Wedbush report cited BLU-667’s updated development status, as well as additional model tweaks that include the closing of the company’s recent equity financing that raised net proceeds of $215.6 million. The 52-week trading range is $13.27 to $44.54, and the consensus price target is $45.71. The shares closed on Tuesday at $41.98, up almost 5% on the day.

Duke Realty Corp. (NYSE: DRE) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Merrill Lynch. The 52-week range is $21.11 to $28.99, and the consensus price target is set at $27.77. The stock closed Tuesday at $26.68.

Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) saw its price target raised from $90 to $95 at Stifel, and the firm keeps its rating on the stock at Hold based on the current valuation. The 52-week range for the toy and game manufacturer is $76.14 to $101.18. The consensus price target is $99.89. The stock closed Tuesday at $97.85.

Merit Medical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: MMSI) was started with an Outperform rating at Wells Fargo. The 52-week range is $17.94 to $31.70, and the consensus price target is $33.13. The stock closed on Tuesday at $28.20.

Roche Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: RHHBY) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Cowen. The 52-week range for the pharmaceutical giant is $25.25 to $33.37, while the consensus price target is $34.10. The shares closed trading on Tuesday at $32.15.

Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) was started with a Hold rating at Stifel with a $29 price objective The company emerged from bankruptcy on April 3 after filing for Chapter 11 protection in April of 2016. The company’s approved reorganization plan included a projection of only 5 million tons per year of metallurgical coal sales by 2021, reflecting anticipated production declines, although firm expects that recently higher pricing may allow the company to invest in extending the life of some of its Australian met coal mines. The shares closed on Wednesday at $27.25 after just its second trading day.

Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SRPT) was raised to Buy from Hold at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. The 52-week trading range is an incredible $8.00 to $63.73. The Wall Street consensus price objective is posted at a stunning $62.19, and the compares with a close on Tuesday at $28.79.

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE: SU) was added to the Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs and the stock traded higher Wednesday morning in the premarket action. The 52-week range for the Canadian energy giant is $25.31 to $33.79. The consensus price objective is $36.83, and the shares closed on Tuesday at $30.61.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) was raised to Buy from Hold at Argus. The 52-week range for the Las Vegas luxury casino is $82.51 to $119.80, and the consensus price objective is $109.18. Shares closed way above that level on Tuesday at $116.74.

Other key analysts upgrades and downgrades were seen in the following:

GlaxoSmithKline PLC (NYSE: GSK) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at BNP Paribas. The 52-week range of the shares is $37.20 to $45.58. The consensus price objective is $47. The shares closed trading Tuesday at $42.04.

Guidance Software Inc. (NASDAQ: GUID) was started with an Overweight rating at Piper Jaffray with a price target of $8.50. That compares with a consensus target of $9.10. The 52-week range is $4.18 to $7.80, and the stock closed on Tuesday at $5.91.

MSG Networks Inc. (NYSE: MSGN) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Macquarie. The 52-week range for the company is $14.73 to $24.85, and the consensus price target on Wall Street is $23.45. The shares closed up 6.5% on Tuesday at $24.45, so this looks like a valuation call.

Nomad Foods Ltd. (NYSE: NOMD) was started with a Buy rating at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey with a price objective of $15. That compares with a consensus price target of $14.76. The 52-week range is $7.85 to $12.97, and the shares closed on Tuesday at $10.93.

U.S. Foods Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: USFD) was added to the focus list at Credit Suisse. The 52-week range for the shares is $22.19 to $28.15. The consensus price target is $29.73. The stock closed Tuesday at $27.60.

United Rentals Inc. (NYSE: URI) was resumed with a Hold rating at Deutsche Bank. The 52-week range is $56.01 to $134.38. The consensus price target for the self-storage giant is $125, and shares closed Tuesday just south of that figure at $123.77.

In case you missed it, here are Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades. They included Alphabet, Bank of America, Caterpillar, Nike, NVIDIA, Panera Bread, Snap, Urban Outfitters and more.

Get Our Free Investment Newsletter

I have read, and agree to the Terms of Use

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.