Stocks closed higher on Tuesday, but the major indexes were directionless on Thursday despite another drop in weekly jobless claims. With an election coming up and with what is still a very deep recession despite such a strong recovery in stocks from the March lows, investors should be considering how they want their assets positioned for the second half 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.

Remember, 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 Thursday, July 9, 2020.

Advanced Energy Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: AEIS) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $73 from $67 (versus a $69.47 prior close) at Raymond James.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) was started with a Buy rating and a $275 price target at Needham. Alibaba closed up almost 9% at $257.68 on Wednesday.

Asbury Automotive Group Inc. (NYSE: ABG) was reiterated as Hold but its target was raised to $100 from $70 (versus a $92.01 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and the price target was cut to $25 from $27 at D.A. Davidson.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) was reiterated as Neutral but the price target was raised to $10 from $5 at UBS. Shares closed up 1.6% at $10.41 on Wednesday, with an $8.19 consensus target price, but they were trading down almost 8% at $9.60 on Thursday’s early indications.

Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND) was maintained with a Sell rating but its price target was raised to $105 from $75 (versus a $144.98 close) at UBS. Its consensus price target was $101.48.

Bloomin’ Brands Inc. (NASDAQ: BLMN) was started as Neutral but with a $12 price target (versus a $10.19 close) at Credit Suisse.

Cedar Fair L.P. (NYSE: FUN) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Janney.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was reiterated as Overweight and its price target was raised to $1,450 from $1,100 at Piper Sandler.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight with a $54 price target at Morgan Stanley, with the firm noting that Cisco’s earnings multiple discount is at a 10-year extreme versus the S&P 500. Shares closed up 0.4% at $45.81 ahead of the call, with a $48.81 consensus target price, and they were indicated up 2.5% at $46.95 ahead of Thursday’s opening bell.

CoreLogic Inc. (NASDAQ: CLGX) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.

Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) was started with an Outperform rating and a $95 price target (versus a $73.12 close) at Credit Suisse. It had an $85.78 prior consensus target price.

DocuSign Inc. (NASDAQ: DOCU) was reiterated as Outperform and the price target was raised to $240 from $165 (versus a $206.35 close) at Wedbush Securities.

Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. (NYSE: AQUA) was reiterated as Strong Buy and its price target was raised to $21 from $19 (versus a $17.81 close) at Raymond James.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $62 from $56 at Raymond James. The stock closed up over 9% at $58.06 and had a $53.57 consensus target price.

Hub Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HUBG) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK) was reiterated as Outperform but its price target was raised to $95 and it was added to the Best Ideas List at Wedbush. Shares closed at $74.27 ahead of the call.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was raised to Buy from Neutral and its price target was raised to $117 from $102 at D.A. Davidson.

KLA Corp. (NASDAQ: KLAC) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $260 from $220 (versus a $212.83 close) at Wedbush. The call is reflecting the strength of Azure, and Wedbush’s new bull case is now up at $300 for Microsoft shares.

Pentair PLC (NYSE: PNR) was raised to Buy from Underperform with a new $46 price objective (versus a $36.62 close) at BofA Securities. Pentair’s 52-week range is $22.01 to $47.43, and its consensus target price was $41.31.

Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays. Shares closed up almost 2% at $9.50, and they had a $9.47 consensus target price.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) was raised to Buy from Hold and the price target was raised to $750 from $400 (versus a $640.88 close) at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. This is not just a COVID-19 call, as it sees the company having greater pipeline confidence.

SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Janney.

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: SIX) was raised to Buy from Hold at Janney.

Square Inc. (NYSE: SQ) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen.

Sunnova Energy International Inc. (NYSE: NOVA) was reiterated as Outperform and its price target was raised to $22 from $16.50 at Raymond James.

Southwestern Energy Com. (NYSE: SWN) was raised to Buy from Neutral with a $4 price target (versus a $2.68 close) at MKM Partners.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) was maintained as Neutral with a $1,250 price target at Wedbush, but the shares were indicated up after Wedbush’s report sees a snapback in demand in China, with a significant EV market penetration ramp up over the next 12 to 18 months that could be worth $400 per share to Tesla.

Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) was reiterated as Outperform but its target price was cut to $69 from $73 (versus a $52.98 close) at Raymond James.

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ: WING) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BTIG.

Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Altria, Apple, Caterpillar, Citigroup, JPMorgan, Nikola, Nokia, Novavax, Transocean, Valero Energy, Walt Disney, Wells Fargo and more.

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