Stocks were indicated to open higher on Friday after a much better than expected payrolls report with a 3.5% unemployment rate. Stocks have been more volatile this week, after hitting all-time highs just last week. There is still much uncertainty and many ongoing and unresolved developments for investors to consider heading into 2020, and this is a time when investors should be giving strong consideration to how they want to be positioned for the next year.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these analyst reports cover stocks to buy, while others cover stocks to sell or to avoid.
Additional commentary has been added on most of the daily analyst reports, along with trading history. The consensus analyst price targets and other valuation metrics are from the Refinitiv (Thomson Reuters) sell-side research service.
These were the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and other ratings changes seen for Friday, December 6, 2019.
Anthem Inc. (NYSE: ANTM) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch. Shares most recently closed at $286.30, in a 52-week range of $227.16 to $317.99. The consensus price target is $333.67.
Audentes Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: BOLD) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.
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Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN | CIEN Price Prediction) was downgraded to Sell from an already cautious Neutral rating and the price target was lowered to $31 from $43 (versus a $36.29 prior close) at UBS. It had a $50.26 consensus target price ahead of the downgrade, and its shares were indicated down 4.2% at $34.75 on Friday.
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at HSBC Securities. Shares most recently closed at $5.55, in a 52-week range of $4.77 to $12.76. The consensus price target is $6.31.
DocuSign Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) was indicated up over 8% at $75.25 on Friday’s post-earnings reaction. Wedbush Securities reiterated its Outperform rating with a $90 target price.
Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG) was reiterated as Overweight and the price target was raised to $174 from $170 (versus a $155.10 close) at Morgan Stanley.
D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI) was started with a Sell rating and a $51 price target (versus a $55.76 close) at Goldman Sachs.
Encana Corp. (NYSE: ECA) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays. Shares most recently closed at $3.92, in a 52-week range of $3.77 to $7.70. The consensus price target is $6.91.
Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. (NYSE: AQUA) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy with an $18 target price (versus a $19.07 close) at Goldman Sachs.
Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this stock has been a falling knife for some time now and the continued negative earnings justify its downward trajectory. Shares last closed at $16.30, with a consensus price target of $16.35.
J. Jill Inc. (NYSE: JILL) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, and the firm cut its target price to $1.50 from $5.00 (versus a $1.24 close) in the call.
Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) was started with a Buy rating and a $71 price target at Goldman Sachs.
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Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) was reiterated as Overweight and the price target was raised to $244 from $225 at Piper Jaffray. The stock closed at $230.79 on Thursday and has a 52-week range of $110.71 to $230.82. The consensus price target is $220.70.
Meritage Homes Corp. (NYSE: MTH) was started with a Sell rating and a $59 price target (versus a $67.01 close) at Goldman Sachs.
Noble Corp. (NYSE: NE) was downgraded to Reduce from Hold at HSBC Securities.
PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) was started with a Buy rating and a $45 price target (versus a $40.20 close) at Goldman Sachs.
Puma Biotechnology Inc. (NASDAQ: PBYI) was started with a Buy rating and a $15 target price (versus a $7.44 close) at H.C. Wainwright.
Sage Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SAGE) closed down over 59% at $60.18 on Thursday after its depression drug failed to meet expectations. Morgan Stanley maintained it as Overweight but slashed its target price to $125 from $217.
Tapestry Inc. (NYSE: TPR) was downgraded to In-Line from Outperform and the price target was cut to $25 from $32 (versus a $25.45 close) at Evercore ISI.
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this stock is a safe investment with a sound product offering. The shares most recently closed at $124.68 and have a consensus price target of $136.21.
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was reiterated as Equal Weight with a $250 target price at Morgan Stanley. The shares were indicated up about 1% at $334.25 on Friday and have a consensus target price of $283.48. The 52-week range is $176.99 to $379.49, and the consensus analyst target is $283.48.
Trade Desk Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $325 target price (versus a $240.42 close) at Needham. The stock was indicated up over 5% at $253.00 on Friday, and its prior consensus target price was $255.39.
Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse, as the firm sees the buyout price more or less realized. Shares closed at $133.55, in a 52-week range of $73.04 to $134.03. The consensus price target is $121.44.
Yext Inc. (NYSE: YEXT) was reiterated as Underweight and the target price was lowered to $13 from $15 (versus a $16.60 close) at Morgan Stanley.
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If 2020 proves to be a volatile year, it could be a huge gain for three gold mining stocks.
Thursday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alphabet, At Home, Chewy, Etsy, Facebook, Nike, RH, Slack, Square, Verint, Visa, Wayfair and many more.
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