The futures were higher Thursday morning as investors contemplated yet another impeachment of the U.S. president and continued to brace for what will be a tsunami of fourth-quarter earnings reports. Those will be kicked off in a big way tomorrow when some of the leading money center banks are due to report. With all the major indexes and the Russell 2000 still trading close to all-time highs, it makes sense for investors to start building some cash reserves while repositioning portfolios for 2021 as a pullback could be in the offing.
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 Thursday, January 14, 2021.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD | AMD Price Prediction) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets, which also dropped the target price on the chip leader to $75. The Wall Street consensus target is $92.37, and Wednesday’s final trade was $91.78, down almost 4% on the day.
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Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) was resumed in coverage at Stifel with a Buy rating and a $550 target. The consensus price objective is higher at $565.20. Wednesday’s closing trade came in at $472.05.
BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BJ) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which pointed out that this wholesale retailer successfully expanded its market share last year, giving top-tier competitors a run for their money. Shares most recently closed at $38.22, well below the consensus price target of $51.37.
Boyd Gaming Corp. (NYSE: BYD) was started at KeyBanc Capital Markets with an Overweight rating and a $58 target price. The posted consensus target is $44.20. The shares closed Wednesday at $48.08.
Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) was raised to Buy from Hold at HSBC Securities. The analysts also lifted the price target on the integrated energy giant to $105. The consensus target is $103.14, and Wednesday’s closing print was at $93.25.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was raised to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital Markets, which also boosted the target price on the restaurant behemoth to a stunning $1,650. The consensus target is $1,448.62. The stock was last seen Wednesday at $1,395 a share.
Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA) was upgraded at Raymond James from Market Perform to Outperform with a $71 price objective. The consensus target is $59.03. The shares closed Wednesday at $63.68.
DuPont de Nemours Inc. (NYSE: DD) was downgraded from Buy to Sell with a $76 target at DZ Bank, while JPMorgan downgraded it from Overweight to Neutral with a $70 target, and it removed the stock from the firm’s Analyst Focus List. The consensus target is $75.74. The last trade on Wednesday was reported at $83.49, down almost 4% on the day. The stock was lower in Thursday’s premarket.
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FuelCell Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL) was downgraded at JPMorgan from Neutral to Underweight with a $10 price target. That compares with a $9.20 consensus and the $19.14 closing print on Wednesday.
Golar LNG Partners L.P. (NASDAQ: GMLP) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel, which also dropped the price target to $3.55. The consensus target is $3.41. The stock actually closed up almost 23% on Wednesday to $3.42.
Hanesbrands Inc. (NYSE: HBI) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that this essential apparel maker may not be able to pull itself out of a pandemic-induced slump. Shares last closed at $15.64 but have a consensus price target of $15.00.
Headhunter Group PLC (NASDAQ: HHR) was raised at BofA Securities from Underperform to Neutral with a $34.30 price objective. The consensus objective was last seen at $26.61. The final trade for Wednesday came in at $27.32.
Idex Corp. (NYSE: IEX) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen, where the analysts actually raised the price target to $220. The posted consensus target is $203.54, and the stock was last seen on Wednesday at $202.92.
Intel Inc. (NASDAQ: INTC) was raised at Morgan Stanley from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $70 target. Atlantic Equities upgraded it to Neutral from Underweight with a $55 target, and BMO Capital Markets upgraded its Market Perform rating to Outperform and lifted the target to $70. Wall Street is applauding the fact that CEO Bob Swan, who many feel has done a very poor job, is stepping down next month and is being replaced with VMware’s Pat Gelsinger. The semiconductor giant has a $53.74 consensus target and closed Wednesday at $56.95 per share.
Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (NASDAQ: ODFL) was upgraded at Stifel from Sell to Hold with a $194 target, and Goldman Sachs boosted it to Neutral from Sell and raised the firm’s target price to $214. The consensus target for the trucking and transport company is $206.31, and the last trade on Wednesday hit the tape at $200.96.
PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE: PPG) was raised from Hold to Buy with a $165 target at Berenberg. That compares with a $153.38 consensus target and Wednesday’s $152.01 close.
Penn National Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Loop Capital. The stock has been on fire, and over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $3.75 and $106.80. The consensus price target is $80.87, but the stock closed way above that level Wednesday at $104.21.
Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE) was raised at Wells Fargo from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $141 price target. The consensus target is up at $144.53, and shares were last seen on Wednesday at $121.15.
SITE Centers Corp. (NASDAQ: SITC) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Sandler, which raised the target price on the stock to $13. The consensus target is lower at $10.69, and the shares closed Wednesday at $10.69.
VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital Markets, which also dropped its target price to $148. That compares with a $173.20 consensus target and a Wednesday closing print of $133.20.
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BofA Securities is very positive on semiconductors for 2021. The firm feels the path is well paved for five large-cap market leaders.
Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included AbbVie, Albertsons, DuPont, Exxon Mobil, Home Depot, KB Home, Mastercard, Palantir and Twitter.
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