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Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: AMC, Anthem, Apollo, Caterpillar, Exxon, HSBC, Newmont, PayPal, Six Flags, Starbucks, Stitch Fix, UPS and More

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Stocks closed up big on Wednesday but were trading lower on another ghastly report of more than 6.6 million weekly jobless claims. The stock market migrated quickly from a raging bull market to a roaring bear market, but the major indexes already have recovered half of their entire losses in just over two weeks on news that the coronavirus numbers are selectively flattening and on stimulus/rescue packages. Many investors have been seeking new ideas about how to be best positioned for the rest of 2020.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week. Our goal is to look for new ideas for long-term investors and short-term traders alike. Many upgrades, downgrades, reiterations and initiations take place regardless of the daily market volatility. Some analyst calls cover stocks to buy while others cover stocks to sell or avoid.

In recent weeks, many analysts have handily lowered their target prices. Despite the recessionary climate, there are actually still many traditional upgrades and reiterations as if things were still close to normal. Remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.

Consensus analyst target prices are from Refinitiv. These are the top analyst calls tracked for Thursday, April 9, 2020.

AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AMC) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at MKM Partners. Shares closed up 5.1% at $3.30 on Wednesday but were down 9% at $3.00 on Thursday morning.

Anthem Inc. (NYSE: ANTM) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies.

Apollo Global Management Inc. (NYSE: APO) was reiterated as Overweight and the price target was raised to $42 from $40 (versus a $37.27 prior close) at Barclays.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) was maintained as Underweight and the price target was cut to $80 from $100 at Stephens. It closed up 4.5% at $127.40 after maintaining its dividend, and it had a prior consensus price target of $128.42.

CBRE Group Inc. (NYSE: CBRE) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.

Cytokinetics Inc. (NASDAQ: CYTK) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight with a $25 target price at Morgan Stanley. The stock closed up 5% at $12.76 on Wednesday, and it was trading up 17% at $14.95 on Thursday, with a prior consensus target price of $20.83.

Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) was started as Equal Weight with a $37 price target at Wells Fargo.

Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE: LLY) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) was maintained as Underperform but the price target was raised to $42 from $40 at RBC Capital Markets. Exxon closed up 6.3% at $43.85, and it had a $48.35 consensus price target.

Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) was maintained as Sector Perform but the price target was lowered to $13 from $19 at RBC Capital Markets.

HSBC Holdings PLC (NYSE: HSBC) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.


International Paper Co. (NYSE: IP) was maintained as Underweight but the price target was lowered to $29 from $38 (versus a $33.12 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. It had a $40.42 prior consensus target price.

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) was downgraded to Underperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI.

Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE: MTD) was downgraded to Underperform from In-Line at Evercore ISI.

Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP) was maintained as Neutral but the price target was raised to $81 from $70 at B. Riley FBR.

Newmont Corp. (NYSE: NEM) was started as Overweight with a $61 price target (versus a $50.53 close) at JPMorgan. It had a $56.72 prior consensus target price.

Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock yet again. The firm said that this pandemic is pushing retailers to the edge of their balance sheets. Shares last closed at $19.00 and have a consensus price target of $27.56.

Packaging Corp. of America (NYSE: PKG) was maintained as Underweight but the price target was lowered to $79 from $89 (versus an $87.84 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. It had a $96.80 prior consensus target price.

PayPal Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) was maintained as Outperform but the price target was lowered to $120 from $124 at RBC Capital Markets.

Penumbra Inc. (NYSE: PEN) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that this $5 billion innovator removes blood clots and the deadly shadow of stroke with catheter-based aspiration technologies. Shares most recently closed at $160.92, with a consensus price target of $184.00.

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: SIX) was maintained as Neutral but the price target was raised to $15.50 from $13.00 at B. Riley FBR.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) was maintained as Equal Weight but its price target was lowered to $80 from $90 (versus a $71.57 close) at Stephens. Starbucks was down over 3% at $69.35 after issuing its business update on sales.

Stitch Fix Inc. (NASDAQ: SFIX) was maintained as Overweight but the price target was lowered to $18 from $26 (versus a $13.57 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. It had a consensus target price of $19.85.

United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE: UPS) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS. UPS closed up 6.3% at $98.79 on news that Amazon would cease to be an open competitor for the overall packages market, and its consensus target price was $109.26.

Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZBH) was downgraded to In-Line from Outperform at Evercore ISI.

Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included AMC, American Express, Apache, Apple, Beyond Meat, BP, Charles Schwab, CSX, General Motors, Pinterest, Walt Disney, Wingstop and many more.

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