The futures were higher on Monday as we start the final trading week of May before the Memorial Day holiday. Friday’s back and forth session ended with the Dow Jones industrials and the Russell 2000 both closing higher, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq both ended lower.

The same tailwind of stimulus and low rates continues to support the market, but the continuing inflation chatter and the worries over the Federal Reserve tapering the massive monthly purchases of debt designed to keep rates low remain a concern. Also note 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 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 Monday, May 24, 2021.

Apollo Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: AINV): Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and has a $13.75 price target. The Wall Street consensus target is $13.97, and the stock ended trading Friday at $14.07, which was down almost 4% for the day.

Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND): Bernstein raised its Underperform rating to Outperform with a $130 price target. The consensus target for the plant-based food company is $119.20, and the stock closed Friday at $106.59 per share.

Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB): Jefferies downgraded the legacy food giant to Hold from Buy and has a $54 price target. That compares with the consensus price objective of $51.10 and Friday’s closing print of $48.87.

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG): BofA Securities downgraded the popular discount retailer from Neutral to Underperform with a $190 price target. The consensus target is much higher at $235.43, and the shares closed Friday at $205.04. The company is expected to report earnings Thursday.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS): Telsey Advisory raised its price target on the retailer to $98 from $80, and it also kept an Outperform rating on the shares. The consensus price target is $87.78, and the shares closed at $83.29 on Friday.

Echo Global Logistics Inc. (NASDAQ: ECHO): Zacks named this as its Bull of the Day. The analyst said that investors are looking to drive this logistics stock to new highs. It most recently closed at $33.78 and has a consensus price target of $37.90.

Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL): Pivotal Research raised the price target on the sports shoe retailing giant to $82 from $76, citing the company’s solid first-quarter results. The consensus target is much lower at $62.89. The final trade on Friday came in at $60.87.

GT Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: GTBP): H.C. Wainwright started coverage with a Buy rating and a $25 price target. The consensus price target is $23, and the stock ended trading on Friday at $14.36, after an almost 4% gain for the day.

HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ): Citigroup upgraded the venerable Silicon Valley company’s stock to Buy from Neutral and also raised the price target to $40. The consensus target is lower at $31.69, and the stock closed Friday at $31.66 a share.

MorphoSys A.G. (NASDAQ: MOR): Morgan Stanley raised its Equal Weight rating to Overweight. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $19.75 to $35.73, and it has a consensus target of $29.89. The shares closed trading Friday at $21.59 apiece.

Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS): Though HSBC Securities downgraded it to Hold from Buy, the firm also raised the price target to $37. The $38.62 consensus is higher, and Friday’s last trade was at $35.46 a share.

Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE: NTR): The HSBC Securities upgrade to Buy from Hold included a price target hike to $68. The consensus target is just $58.28. The last trade on Friday came in at $59.96.

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: OLLI): Morgan Stanley upgraded the discount retailer to Equal Weight from Underweight, and it raised the price target to $85. The posted consensus price objective is higher at $96.23, and the shares were last seen on Friday trading at $76.35.
Omnicell Inc. (NASDAQ: OMCL): BTIG Research started coverage with a Buy rating and a $165 price target. The consensus target is $141.13, and Friday’s final trade was reported at $135.79.

Proofpoint Inc. (NASDAQ: PFPT): Baird downgraded the shares to Neutral from Outperform and has a $176 price objective. The consensus target is $172, and Friday’s final trade hit the tape at $171.16.

Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: RETA): Goldman Sachs started coverage with a Buy rating and a $236 price target. The consensus price objective is $237.11, and Friday’s closing price was $110.98. Shares were up almost 4% in Monday’s premarket action.

Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): Zacks selected this as its Bear of the Day stock, saying that valuation is a concern for this hot tech stock. Shares last closed at $89.10, and the consensus price target is $101.09.

Shoals Technologies Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SHLS): Credit Suisse raised the solar energy parts maker to Outperform from Neutral and has a $40 price target. The consensus price objective is $39.90, and the stock ended Friday’s trading at $24.39, which was up over 4% for the day.

Stem Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM): Goldman Sachs started shares of the energy storage company with a Buy rating and a $30 price target. No consensus target was available as the company had a recent initial public offering. The shares closed on Friday at $22.09, after almost an 8% pop. The stock was up an additional 6% in premarket trading.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA): Wells Fargo started coverage on the electric vehicle giant with an Equal Weight rating and a $590 price target. That compares with the higher $657.52 consensus target and Friday’s closing print of $580.88.

Five Jefferies value stock picks are reasonably priced, come with dependable dividends and could gain some momentum as money rotates away from the sectors and stocks that are falling out of favor on Wall Street. Each is quite suitable for growth investors looking for a dividend kicker.

Friday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included AT&T, Cisco Systems, Datadog, Dish Network, Energy Transfer, Pioneer Natural Resources, Splunk and Virgin Galactic. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Amicus Therapeutics, Bloomin’ Brands, Seagate Technology and more.

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