The futures were mixed on Monday after investors cheered a substantial Friday risk-off rally that saw all the big indexes close in positive territory and the S&P 500 printing yet another all-time closing high. The big story this week is the start of the second-quarter earnings season, and many across Wall Street are expecting not only some sensational numbers, which some are attributing to the reopening of the economy across America, but also some very positive forward guidance for the third quarter and the rest of 2021. With comparisons against some very weak 2020 COVID-19-related numbers, strong results and solid guidance seem very possible.

Despite the added concerns across Wall Street about tapering of the quantitative easing program and a clear building of inflationary pressures, the Federal Reserve is vowing to keep interest rates contained. That could be among the reasons for the continued moves higher in the equity markets even after sell-offs. 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 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, July 12, 2021.

Affiliated Managers Group Inc. (NYSE: AMG): Deutsche Bank upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold and also raised the price target to $202 from $167. The consensus target price is much lower at $175.13. The stock closed trading Friday at $176.78, which was up almost 4% for the day.

Alarm.com Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ALRM): Barclays initiated coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $100 price target. The consensus price objective is $107.50. The stock closed Friday at $86.87.

AST SpaceMobile Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS): Barclays started coverage of the stock with an Outperform rating and a $29 price target. That compares with the $35 consensus target and Friday’s closing print of $12.76. The stock was up almost 10% in the premarket.

Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY): Zacks named this stock as its Bull of the Day. The firm said that the future looks bright for this popular consumer electronics retailer. Shares most recently closed at $110.86 and have a consensus price target of $125.02.

Brinker International Inc. (NYSE: EAT): Raymond James raised the Chili’s restaurant parent to Outperform from Market Perform and has a price target of $75. The consensus target is $77.76. The stock was last seen on Friday at $60.90.

Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR): Bernstein downgraded the cable and communications giant to Market Perform from Outperform and has a $788 price target. The consensus target is $751.04. The shares closed Friday at $736.47. As it was trading just shy of a 52-week high after a monster run, this looks like a valuation call.

Cheesecake Factory Inc. (NASDAQ: CAKE): Raymond James raised its Market Perform rating to Outperform and has a $60 price target. The consensus target for the popular family restaurant is $61.46. The final Friday trade was reported at $51.66, which was up almost 5% on the day.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX): BMO Capital Markets started the energy behemoth with an Outperform rating and a $123 price target. The consensus target is $122.78, and the stock closed at $104.07 on Friday.

Convey Holding Parent Inc. (NYSE: CNVY): Goldman Sachs started coverage with a Buy rating and a large $21 price target. Barclays started the shares at Overweight with a $16 price target. The stock had a recent initial public offering, so no consensus price target has been set. The shares have traded between $9.11 and $14.29 since the deal was priced. Friday’s last trade was reported at $9.88.

Empire State Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: ESRT): BMO Capital Markets downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Outperform and has a $13.50 price target. The consensus target is $13.21. The shares popped almost 4% on Friday to close at $12.25.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM): BMO Capital Markets started the energy giant with a Market Perform rating and a $69 price target. The consensus price objective is $66.23. The final Friday trade was reported at $61.23.

Greenbrier Companies Inc. (NYSE: GBX): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Underperform and raised the price target to $52 from $45. The consensus target is $49.40. The stock closed Friday at $43.27, after rising over 8% on the day after posting solid earnings for the quarter.

Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE: IR): Goldman Sachs raised the shares from Hold to Buy with a $59 price target for the industrial leader. The consensus price target is $55.71. The stock closed trading on Friday at $49.38, up almost 3% for the day.
Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: INO): This was named as the Zacks Bear of the Day stock. The analyst wonders whether it is too late to buy this coronavirus vaccine stock. Shares last closed at $8.33, and the consensus price target is $13.22.

Invesco Ltd. (NYSE: IVZ): Citigroup upgraded of the investment giant to Buy from Hold included a price target hike to $34 from $29. That compares with the $30.54 consensus target and Friday’s closing trade of $26.33, which was up almost 5% for the day.

LiveVox Holding Inc. (NASDAQ: LVOX): Piper Sandler started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $12 price target. The consensus target is up at $15.50, and Friday’s closing print was $8.55.

Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM): Goldman Sachs reiterated its Buy rating on the tobacco giant. The analysts noted the company recently entered into an agreement to acquire Vectura, a provider of innovative inhaled drug delivery solutions. The Goldman Sachs price target is $110, while the consensus target is $108.07. The stock closed Friday at $99.40.

Rocket Companies Inc. (NYSE: RKT): Jefferies not only downgraded the mortgage giant to Hold from Buy but lowered its price target to $18 from $26. The posted consensus target is $20.23. The shares ended trading on Friday at $19.03.

Sempra (NYSE: SRE): Goldman Sachs removed the stock from its Conviction Buy List but kept a Buy rating on the shares and has a $149 price target. The consensus target $150.78. The last trade for Friday hit the tape at $132.86.

Shockwave Medical Inc. (NASDAQ: SWAV): BofA Securities downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy but raised the price target to $200 from $180. The consensus target is $184.60. The stock closed on Friday at $189.26. After a very impressive run, this could be another valuation call.

This year may offer one of the best opportunities for growth stock investors to buy some of the top financial stocks before they report second-quarter earnings. Four dividend-paying giants could very well offer the best total return potential for the rest of 2021.

Friday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included American Express, Bumble, Cloudera, Diamondback Energy, Discover Financial, General Motors, Match, NOV and UnitedHealth. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Anthem, Deutsche Bank, Nio, Synchrony 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.