The futures traded higher Tuesday morning after a seesaw Monday that saw the Dow Jones industrial average print another all-time high before pulling way back. Investors should keep in mind that the major equity indexes are still almost at all-time highs, regardless of all the caution and concerns about rising COVID-19 cases and shutdowns. The current view is to look out to 2021 for an economic recovery and for the vaccine(s) to be more widespread.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new ideas for investors and traders alike. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock. Consensus analyst target data is from Refinitiv.
These are the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Tuesday, December 15, 2020.
Advanced Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: AEIS | AEIS Price Prediction) saw its price target lifted to $100 from $88 at Cowen as the analysts cited that management articulated the company’s long-term strategy and revenue/margin profile/earnings power, and the company initiated a $0.10 dividend per quarter. The Wall Street consensus price target is $96.11, and shares closed slightly north of the increase Monday at $100.83.
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Baker Hughes Co. (NYSE: BKR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup. Still, the firm lifted the price target on the shares to $24. That is compared to the lower $21.96 consensus target. The shares were last seen at $21.68 on Monday.
Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs The 52-week trading range for the stock is $89 to $349.95, and the consensus price target is $220.30. The stock closed just below that level on Monday at $228.62.
Bristol Myers Squibb Inc. (NYSE: BMY) was reiterated as a Buy and added to the Goldman Sachs conviction list. The analysts also raised their price target on the pharmaceutical giant to $86 from $82. The consensus figure is $74.29. Monday’s last trade was reported at $59.97. The shares were 2% higher on the Goldman report in premarket action.
Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Wells Fargo, which has a $105 price target. The consensus target for the integrated energy leader is $100.76. Shares were last seen on Monday at $89.44.
D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that housing is still red hot no matter what happens with stimulus. Shares most recently closed at $70.40 and have a consensus price target of $88.35.
Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE: EMR) was raised to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank. The 52-week trading range for the cyclical giant is $37.75 to $83.14. The consensus target for the utility leader is $79.05. Monday’s final print came in at $80.41.
Express Inc. (NYSE: EXPR) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that the tough challenges for retail only got worse amid the shutdowns. Shares last closed at $1.04 and have a consensus price target of $1.25.
Halliburton Inc. (NYSE: HAL) was raised to Buy from Neutral at BofA Securities, which has a $24 price objective for the oil field giant. That compares with a $17.24 consensus target and Monday’s final print of $18.96.
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HCA Healthcare Inc. (NYSE: HCA) was started with a Buy rating and a $191 price target at Goldman Sachs. The consensus is $158.81, and shares closed Monday at $160.86.
Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HLT) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup, which also lifted its price target to $130. That compares to the $100.60 consensus target and the $103.04 closing price on Monday.
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) was downgraded from Overweight to Equal Weight with a $780 price target at Morgan Stanley. The consensus target for the robotic surgery giant is $730.31, and Monday’s closing price was $764.79.
L3 Harris Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LHX) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at JPMorgan, where the analysts kept a $215 price objective. The consensus target is higher at $227.50, and shares closed at $189.95.
Maravai Life Sciences Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: MRVI) was started with a Buy rating and a $31 target at Stifel and started as Outperform at William Blair. The company had a recent IPO, and no consensus target has been established. The most recent close was at $25.73. Shares were 3% higher in premarket action.
Medtronic PLC (NYSE: MDT) was raised from Sell to Neutral at Goldman Sachs, which also lifted the price target to $119. It is lower than the $125.29 consensus target. Monday’s final trade came in at $111.97.
NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NASDAQ: NXPI) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $58.41 to $167.27 and have a consensus price objective of $162.36. The stock closed Monday at $158.46, so this could be a straight valuation call.
Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) saw its target price raised to $70 from $67 at Cowen. The consensus target is $72.44, and Monday’s final print was $67.19.
Stoke Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: STOK) was resumed in coverage at H.C. Wainwright, which reset the price objective to $70. The consensus target of $49.13 is much lower. The stock was last seen trading at $56.04, up over 8% on Monday.
Southern Co. (NYSE: SO) was raised from Sector Perform to Sector Outperform with a $75 price target at Scotiabank. That compares with a $63.24 consensus target and Monday’s final trade of $59.66.
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) was raised to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, which also pushed the price target to $69. The consensus target is just $38.06. The last trade on Monday was posted at $39.83. Shares were modestly higher in premarket trading.
Five top dividend-paying stock picks from BofA Securities have solid growth potential and can deliver solid total return.
In case you missed it, Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included AEP, BJ’s, Clorox, HCA, Shake Shack, USBancorp, Walt Disney, Xpeng and more.
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