The futures were lower on Thursday as investors Wednesday watched the Dow Jones industrials close at yet another record high while the S&P 500, Nasdaq and the Russell 2000 took a breather. Investors are continuing to cheer the possibility of a big stimulus package becoming a reality and fourth-quarter earnings that came in very strong. Top analysts on Wall Street are pointing to “bubble” metrics, like the massive retail stock and option trading, huge hedge fund leverage and IPOs that don’t make money, and many are urging caution.

Though fourth-quarter earnings reporting is almost complete, most across Wall Street still are examining not only the results but also looking to see what guidance for the balance of the first quarter and the rest of 2021 looks like. With stocks very overbought and many trades crowded, and major Wall Street firms warning of an impending 5% to 10% correction, it makes sense for investors to start building some cash reserves while repositioning portfolios for the rest of 2021.

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, February 18, 2021.

AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The firm said that streaming entertainment is booming, but smaller players struggle to compete with the big names. Shares last closed at $51.16, but the consensus price target is all the way down at $33.06.

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: BW) was started with a Buy rating and a $12 price target at B. Riley Securities. The consensus target price is $8.73. Shares closed on Wednesday at $6.72, which was down over 9% for the day.

Cognyte Software Ltd. (NASDAQ: CGNT) was started with a Buy rating and a $42 price target at Stifel. The consensus target is $24.42. The shares were last seen on Wednesday at $29.75.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD) was resumed in coverage with a Hold rating at Stifel, which has a $240 price target. The consensus target for the cybersecurity giant is $223.77. The last trade on Wednesday was reported at $238.56.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (NYSE: HMC) was downgraded to Outperform from Buy at Daiwa Securities. Shares of the venerable car company have traded in a 52-week range of $19.38 to $30.21 and have a $34.28 consensus target price. The shares were last seen on Wednesday at $29.20.

Infinity Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: INFI) was started with a Buy rating and a $7 price target at Piper Sandler. The consensus target is $7.75. The stock closed on Wednesday at $3.81. It was up almost 5% in premarket trading.

Kar Auction Services Inc. (NYSE: KAR) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Stephens, which lowered the price target to $16. The consensus target is $19.80. The stock fell almost 14% after posting disappointing results to close Wednesday at $15.93 a share.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) was named as the Bull of the Day at Zacks, which said that economic conditions are lining up for an extended rally in the value of new homes. Shares of most recently closed at $41.25 and have a consensus price target of $46.00.

Kratos Defense and Security Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS) was downgraded at Baird from Outperform to Neutral with a $29 price target. The consensus price target is $27.60. Wednesday’s last trade came in at $33.24.

McAfee Corp. (NASDAQ: MCFE) was started at Stifel with a Hold rating and a $20 price target. The consensus target is $21.69. The shares were last seen on Wednesday at $19.28.

Mohawk Industries Inc. (NYSE: MHK) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse, which also raised the price target to $180. The consensus target for the carpet and flooring giant is $172.31. The shares closed at $168.45 on Wednesday.

Noble Midstream Partners L.P. (NASDAQ: NBLX) was downgraded at Credit Suisse from Outperform to Neutral with a $13.50 target price. The posted consensus target is $13.70, below Wednesday’s closing share price of $13.97.

Rapid7 Inc. (NYSE: RPD) was started with a Buy rating and a $110 target price at Stifel. The consensus target is lower at $100.85. The last trade for Wednesday came in at $80.74.
Sleep Numbers Corp. (NASDAQ: SNBR) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS, which also raised the price target to $135. The consensus target is $95.25. The stock closed Wednesday at $120.01, but shares were up almost 13% in premarket trading after the company posted a blowout quarter.

STMicroelectronics N.V. (NYSE: STM) was raised to Hold from Sell at Berenberg. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $14.67 to $43.02 and has a consensus price target of $43.94. The last trade for Wednesday was reported at $41.75.

TechnipFMC PLC (NYSE: FTI) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $4.49 to $17.50 and has an $11.88 consensus target. The final trade for Wednesday was reported at $7.80, down almost 4%, and the shares headed another 5% lower in the premarket.

Tenable Inc. (NASDAQ: TENB) was resumed in coverage at Stifel with a $55 price target. That compares with the higher consensus of $60.67 and Wednesday’s closing price of $43.85.

Tilray Inc. (NASDAQ: TLRY) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Benchmark and to Neutral from Overweight at Piper Sandler, which also raised the target price on the marijuana stock to $26. The consensus target is much lower at $11.48. The shares closed Wednesday at $31.51, down almost 9% on the day, but were almost 5% higher in the premarket after an earnings report that topped estimates.

Varonis Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: VRNS) was raised from Hold to Buy with a $253 price objective at Berenberg. The lower consensus price objective is $208.13. Wednesday’s close was at $200.82, which was down over 7%.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan. The firm raised the price target on the bank to $37, which is near the $37.88 consensus but also Wednesday’s $36.59 close, after the stock rose more than 5% on the day.

Goldman Sachs has raised the price targets on stocks of some companies that delivered the goods in a big way during earnings season. Three momentum tech stocks still look to have some very solid upside potential.

Why did Warren Buffett sell Apple shares? With the share price slipping, is it time for investors to worry?

Wednesday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Agilent Technologies, Bausch Health, Bluebird Bio, Cree, Facebook, Fortive, Oshkosh and Palantir Technologies. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Chesapeake Energy, Square, Under Armour and more.

Get Our Free Investment Newsletter

I have read, and agree to the Terms of Use

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.