The futures were mixed on Friday following yet another day where the Dow Jones industrials printed a new all-time high and the S&P 500, Nasdaq and Russell 2000 all rallied off mid-day lows to post solid gains. The surprisingly low jobs report number of 266,000 was a shock to Wall Street, which had a consensus number of 965,000 and a high estimate of 2.1 million jobs. The concern for many was that an impressive jobs additions report would press the Federal Reserve to taper quantitative easing bond purchases sooner than expected, but this number should quell that fear for now.

Despite the taper concerns and clear inflationary pressures, the Federal Reserve is vowing to keep interest rates contained, which could be one reason for the continued moves higher in the equity markets, even after sell-offs. Note also that money markets continue to see massive inflows, which is another big plus.

With major Wall Street firms still warning of the potential for impending 5% to 10% correction across the board, it makes sense for investors to continue building some cash reserves into the market strength while repositioning portfolios for the balance of the second quarter and the rest of 2021.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week, seeking 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 Friday, May 7, 2021.

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. (NYSE: APD): Barclays downgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Overweight but raised the price target to $310. The consensus target is lower at $304.90. The stock was last seen Thursday at $293.65.

Albemarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB): JPMorgan upgraded the stock to Neutral from Underweight and also raised the price target to $152. The posted consensus target is $153.72, and the shares were last seen Thursday at $152.85, which was down almost 9% for the day.

Azul S.A. (NYSE: AZUL): Seaport Global Securities raised its Neutral rating to Buy. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $5.50 to $25.84 and have a $19.77 consensus price objective. The stock closed on Thursday at $21.22 a share.

Brinker International Inc. (NYSE: EAT): JPMorgan upgraded the parent of the popular Chili’s restaurant chain to Overweight from Neutral and has a $78 price target. The consensus target of $77.83 is in line, and Thursday’s close was at $63.46 a share.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP): Raymond James raised the integrated energy giant to Strong Buy from Outperform, and it has an $85 price target. The consensus target is a much lower $65.96. Thursday’s final print came in at $55.70.

Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI): Zacks named this as its Bull of the Day. The analyst said that the shares hit new highs in late March and a return to top-line growth appears to be just around the corner, boosted by the economic reopening, the vaccine and pent-up demand. The stock most recently closed at $141.75 and has a consensus price target of $156.84.

Datadog Inc. (NASDAQ: DDOD): Monness Crespi & Hardt raised its price target to $103 from $100, while also raising revenue estimates, after the company posted strong results after the close. The consensus target is higher at $118.93. The stock closed Thursday at $71.38, down over 7% on the day. The stock was back up nearly 7% in Friday’s premarket.

Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA): Barclays upgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Underweight and also raised the price target to $35. The consensus target is higher at $43.85, and the final trade on Thursday was at $36.25.

General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD): Argus raised the aerospace and defense giant to Buy from Hold and has a $225 price target. The consensus target is just $193.41. The shares closed on Thursday at $192.68.

Grubhub Inc. (NYSE: GRUB): Zacks selected this as its Bear of the Day stock and said that, given the backdrop and the upcoming merger, investors might want to stay away from this one. Shares last closed at $64.25, and the consensus price target is $68.89.

Peloton Interactive Inc. (NASDAQ: PTON): Telsey Advisory lowered its price target to $120 from $150. The consensus target is $158.67. The shares were pummeled after the company made a full recall of the exercise machines after reports of a death and injuries. The stock closed Thursday at $83.78. Shares rebounded almost 5% in the premarket.

Roku Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU): Pivotal Research Group lowered the price target on the shares to $350 from $400. The compares with the much higher $469.35 consensus. Thursday’s last trade was at $284.18, which was down almost 7% for the day. Shares were up almost 9% in the premarket.

Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): Wolfe Research raised its rating to Outperform from Peer Perform. The shares have traded in a wide 52-week range of $30 to $104.11 and have a $98.91 consensus price objective. The stock was hammered Thursday, closing down almost 12% to $84.15 after posting surprising disappointing earnings.
Steelcase Inc. (NYSE: SCS): Benchmark upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold and has a $17 price target. The consensus price objective is $18, and the stock closed at $14.04 on Thursday.

Synaptics Inc. (NASDAQ: SYNA): Summit Insights downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy. The stock has traded in a wide 52-week range of $55.59 to $146.93 and have a $144.25 consensus price objective. The last Thursday trade came in at $133.30.

Tilray Inc. (NASDAQ: TLRY): Jefferies resumed coverage on the marijuana company with a $23 price target. The consensus target is lower at $18.98. Thursday’s closing print was reported at $14.15, which was down 11% for the day.

Tupperware Brands Corp. (NYSE: TUP): Citigroup upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and raised the price target to $36. The slightly higher $37 consensus target also compares with Thursday’s closing trade of $25.40.

ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC): Wells Fargo raised the broadcast and programming giant to Equal Weight from Underweight but lowered the price target to $45. The consensus target is higher at $52, and the final Thursday trade was reported at $38.15.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): Stifel raised its Sell rating to Hold and hiked the price target to $280. The consensus target is much higher at $339.67. The last trade Thursday hit the tape at $286.13, a gain of almost 6% for the day.

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ: WING): Northcoast downgraded it to Neutral from Buy. Shares of the popular restaurant chain have traded in a 52-week range of $112.47 to $172.87 and have a $169 consensus price objective. The final Thursday trade was reported at $151.33.

Five Goldman Sachs high-conviction stock picks look like outstanding total return ideas now. They are positioned well for the rest of 2021 and beyond, and they make sense for growth and income investors in an aging bull market.

See why one top analyst sees plenty of upside in Peloton despite the sell-off and why another thinks Zynga is in “a better position now than at any point in its history.”

Thursday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Apple, Darden Restaurants, Peloton International, Pfizer, Pioneer Natural Resources, Tilray and Zynga. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Allstate, Booking, CyberArk, Hilton and more.

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