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Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: AbbVie, AEP, AB InBev, Arconic, Baidu, Best Buy, Co-Diagnostics, Cree, Exelon, Home Depot, NRG, T-Mobile, Walmart and More

Jon C. Ogg

Published: May 20, 2020 9:09 am

Last Updated: May 20, 2020 9:29 am

Stocks surged on Monday and saw a big sell-off on Tuesday, and the volatility was set to continue as the major stock indexes were indicated up about 1% on Wednesday morning. Investors are now moving past earnings season and looking beyond bad economic readings in what was a major recovery since the panic-selling lows of March. Some investors now should be considering new ideas for how to be best positioned ahead of summer and for the rest of 2020.

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

Analysts are still making many upgrades, downgrades, reiterations and initiations ahead of and after key earnings reports. While many analysts are still cutting price targets and earnings estimates for the coming quarters and for the year, many are still maintaining their prior official ratings.

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 we have seen on Wednesday, May 20, 2020.

AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which noted the profitable products on the market and a powerful pipeline. Shares most recently closed at $91.20 and have a consensus price target of $93.69.

AES Corp. (NYSE: AES) was started with a Buy rating and a $17 price target (versus a $12.81 prior close) at Seaport Global.

American Electric Power Co. Inc. (NYSE: AEP) was started with a Buy rating and an $86 price target (versus a $77.14 close) at Seaport Global.

American States Water Co. (NYSE: AWR) was started with a Buy rating and an $84 price target at Seaport Global.

American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK) was started with a Buy rating and a $130 price target (versus a $120.17 close) at Seaport Global.

Anaplan Inc. (NYSE: PLAN) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight and its price target was cut to $50 from $55 (versus a $46.26 close) at Wells Fargo.

Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A./N.V. (NYSE: BUD) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan. Shares closed down 4.3% at $41.26 on Tuesday, with a $60.43 consensus price target.

Arconic Corp. (NYSE: ARNC) was started as Outperform with a $22 price target (versus a $9.29 close) at Credit Suisse.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $1,210 from $1,030 (versus a $1,104.41 close) at Nomura/Instinet.

Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $145 from $135 (versus a $109.75 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. Nomura/Instinet reiterated it as Neutral but raised its price target to $123 from $120.

Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $90 from $75 at CFRA.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Compass Point.

Cheniere Energy Inc. (NYSE: LNG) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight but its price target was lowered to $64 from $76 (versus a $43.13 close) at Morgan Stanley.

Co-Diagnostics Inc. (NASDAQ: CODX) was raised to Buy from Hold with a $30 price target (versus an $18.85 close) at Maxim Group.

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Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) was raised to Neutral from Underweight and its price target was raised to $60 from $40 (versus a $49.65 close) at JPMorgan.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $95 from $80 (versus a $78.55 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Delek US Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DK) was raised to Neutral from Sell and the price target was raised to $22 from $21 (versus a $20.29 close) at Goldman Sachs.

DTE Energy Co. (NYSE: DTE) was started with a Buy rating and a $121 price target (versus a $102.86 close) at Seaport Global.

Entergy Corp. (NYSE: ETR) was started with a Buy rating and a $108 price target (versus a $96.56 close) at Seaport Global.

Everbridge Inc. (NASDAQ: EVBG) was reiterated as Buy and its price target was raised to $175 from $135 (versus a $152.19 close) at Needham.

Eversource Energy (NYSE: ES) was started with a Buy rating and an $88 price target (versus a $78.23 close) at Seaport Global.

Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC) was started with a Buy rating and a $40 price target (versus a $36.71 close) at Seaport Global.

Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRE) was raised to Buy from Hold and its price target was raised to $16 from $7 (versus a $6.99 close, after a 4.9% drop) at Jefferies. It had a $12.50 consensus price target, and its shares were indicated up 14% at $7.95 on Wednesday.

Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) closed down almost 3% at $238.10 after earnings on Tuesday. Nomura/Instinet reiterated it as Buy and raised its price target to $252 from $240. Raymond James reiterated its Outperform rating and raised its target to $250 from $245.

IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IAC) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this already high-priced stock has become even more expensive after a huge recovery rally. Shares last closed at $259.13, with a consensus price target of $272.39.

MyoKardia Inc. (NASDAQ: MYOK) was reiterated as Outperform and its target price was raised to $188 from $95 (versus a $106.03 close) at Cantor Fitzgerald.

NRG Energy Inc. (NYSE: NRG) was started with a Buy rating and a $42.50 price target (versus a $35.35 close) at Seaport Global.

Pinduoduo Inc. (NASDAQ: PDD) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA Securities.

Southern Co. (NYSE: SO) was started with a Buy rating and a $60 price target (versus a $53.57 close) at Seaport Global.

Sunnova Energy International Inc. (NYSE: NOVA) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA Securities.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: AMTD) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Compass Point.

Texas Roadhouse Inc. (NASDAQ: TXRH) was reiterated as Strong Buy and the price target was raised to $56 from $52 at Raymond James.

T-Mobile US Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $126 from $104 (versus a $98.60 close) at KeyBanc Capital Markets. It had a $101.05 consensus price target.

Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was down 2.1% at $124.95 after earnings. Nomura/Instinet reiterated Walmart as Buy and raised the price target to $139 from $131. Raymond James reiterated its Outperform rating and raised the price target to $135 from $130.

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Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Beyond Meat, BioNTech, Comcast, DraftKings, Expedia, Gap, Gilead Sciences, Hess, Lululemon Athletica, Newmont and Royal Gold.