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Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Abbott Labs, AMD, Analog Devices, Applied Materials, Ford, Illumina, Medtronic, Tesla, Wells Fargo and More

Jon C. Ogg

Published: January 2, 2020 9:20 am

Last Updated: January 30, 2020 11:40 am

Stocks turned in a banner 2019, with roughly a 28% gain on the S&P 500, but that’s all over now and it’s time to look at 2020. The consensus targets on S&P 500 and Dow Jones industrial average stocks are aiming for positive returns in 2020 to keep the decade-long bull market still running, and many analysts will be making price target changes in the coming two weeks and into earnings season. The first trading day of 2020 was indicated to be up 165 points on the Dow and up 19 points on the S&P 500. The seasonal Santa Claus rally can succumb to profit-taking as investors moved into a new tax year, but the macro news is likely to be the real magnet for the markets in January.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to find new ideas for traders and long-term investors alike. Some of the daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy, while some calls cover stocks to sell or to avoid.

We have provided these calls in a quick-hit summary for easy reading, and additional comments and trading data have been added on some calls. The consensus analyst price targets mentioned and other valuation metrics are from the Refinitiv sell-side research service.

Most research departments generally hold off on their flood of new analyst calls until the first full trading week of the year, so analyst calls may be light on Thursday and Friday. These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations for the first trading day of 2020.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) was downgraded to In-Line from Outperform at Evercore ISI Group. Shares closed out 2019 at $86.86, with a $94.70 consensus target price.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) was reiterated as Buy and its target price was raised to $58 from $40 at Nomura/Instinet. AMD closed 2019 out at $45.86, and its consensus target price was $37.77.

Analog Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: ADI) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that growth peaks of the past will take time to recover as analog solutions in a digital world evolve. Shares last closed at $118.84, with a consensus price target of $124.71.

Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) was reiterated as Buy and its target price was raised to $75 from $68 at Nomura/Instinet. It closed 2019 at $61.04 a share, and its consensus target price was $67.52.

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) was raised to Outperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI Group.

BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight with a $575 target price (versus a $502.70 prior close) at Wells Fargo, although other asset managers saw downgrades in the call.

Core Laboratories N.V. (NYSE: CLB) closed out 2019 with a 20% drop to $37.67 on the final day of 2019. Stifel downgraded it to Hold from Buy and cut its target to $40 from $50.

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW) was downgraded to In-Line from Outperform at Evercore ISI Group. The stock closed out 2019 at $233.29, with a $250.06 consensus target price.

Fastly Inc. (NYSE: FSLY) was raised to Overweight from Neutral with a $24 target price at Piper Jaffray. The shares ended 2019 at $20.07, and they have a consensus target price of $26.11.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) was downgraded to Underperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI Group. Ford ended 2019 at $9.30, with a consensus target price of $10.16 and a 52-week trading range of $7.78 to $10.56.

Hanesbrands Inc. (NYSE: HBI) downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo.

Henry Schein Inc. (NASDAQ: HSIC) was raised to In-Line from Underperform and the target price was raised to $70 from $61 (versus a $66.72 close) at Evercore ISI Group. The consensus target price is $68.40.

Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ICPT) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy but its target price was raised to $140 from $85 (versus a $123.92 close) at Citigroup.

Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE: KEYS) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this 2014 spinoff from Agilent has become a key innovator in electronics systems for the biggest tech players. Shares of Keysight most recently closed at $102.63 and have a consensus price target of $120.00.

Medtronic PLC (NYSE: MDT) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $135 target price (versus a $113.45 close) at Guggenheim. The consensus target price is $122.55.

Progressive Corp. (NYSE: PGR) was raised to Buy from Hold with an $84 target price (versus a $72.39 close) at Deutsche Bank.

Seattle Genetics Inc. (NASDAQ: SGEN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Guggenheim.

Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE: SIG) downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was reiterated with a Buy rating and the price target was raised to $515 from $375 at Canaccord Genuity. Tesla shares closed out 2020 at $418.33, in a 52-week range of $176.99 to $435.31 and with a consensus target price of $299.00.

T. Rowe Price Group Inc. (NASDAQ: TROW) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight with a $145 target price (versus a $121.84 close) at Wells Fargo, although other asset managers saw downgrades in the call.

United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) was raised to Outperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI Group. Shares closed at $88.09 on the last day of 2019, and the consensus target price was $110.18.

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ: UPWK) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and its target price was slashed to $12 from $23 (versus a $10.67 close) at Citigroup.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral with a $50 target price at Robert W. Baird. Wells Fargo ended 2019 at $53.80, and its consensus target price was $51.79. The 52-week trading range is $43.34 to $54.75.

Wintrust Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: WTFC) was reiterated as Outperform with an $80 target price (versus a $70.90 close) at Wedbush Securities.

Wells Fargo has downgraded several asset management firms due to longstanding industry price pressure and the long move toward lower-fee exchange-traded funds (ETFs) over mutual funds. Janus Henderson Group PLC (NYSE: JHG), Invesco Ltd. (NYSE: IVZ) and Franlin Resources Inc. (NYSE: BEN) were all downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight. Wells Fargo downgraded BrightSphere Investment Group Inc. (NYSE: BSIG) to Equal Weight from Overweight.

The top analyst upgrades and downgrades on the final trading days of 2019 included Activision Blizzard, Amazon.com, Apple, Boeing, Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson, Lennar, Nio, Nvidia, Tesla and more.