The futures traded lower on this Monday, as Wall Street gears up for the onslaught of third-quarter earnings reports, which will begin with the big money center banks and brokerage firms reporting first. Friday’s weak close came after the kick-the-can down the road debt ceiling agreement forged in Congress last week gave a little support to what appears to be a very nervous market. Investors can count on seeing the sequel in December when the whole political drama will start over. The September nonfarm payrolls on Friday came in way below consensus estimates but likely will not change the Federal Reserve’s plan to start the quantitative easing tapering in November.

Top strategists across Wall Street remain focused on rising interest rates, Federal Reserve tapering due to begin soon, big increases in energy costs, ongoing supply chain issues and stagflation worries, and analysts are not nearly as positive on the upcoming earnings seasons as they were for the second quarter. Toss in the debt ceiling and China worries, and the cauldron continues to simmer.

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, October 11, 2021.

AG Mortgage Investment Trust Inc. (NASDAQ: MITT): Keefe Bruyette upgraded the shares to Outperform from Market Perform and also lifted the target price to $13.75 from $12.50. The Wall Street consensus target is $12.90. The stock closed on Friday at $11.45 per share.

Albertsons Companies Inc. (NYSE: ACI): Oppenheimer downgraded shares of the supermarket giant to Perform from Outperform. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between $13.90 and $34.09 a share, and it has a $28.78 consensus price target.

Alpha and Omega Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ: AOSL): This was named as the Bull of the Day stock at Zacks, which said that the well-documented chip shortage is leaving some companies with huge profits. Shares most recently closed at $31.53 and have a consensus price target of $44.67.

Carvana Co. (NYSE: CVNA): Wedbush upgraded the stock to Outperform from Neutral and lifted the price objective to $360 from $350. That compares with a $392.90 consensus target and Friday’s last trade at $282.43 per share.

ChemoCentryx Inc. (NASDAQ: CCXI): SVB Leerink raised its Market Perform rating to Outperform with a $64 price target. The consensus target is $62. The last trade on Friday was reported at $38.41, which was up a stunning 95% on the day after the company received FDA approval for Tavneos.

Cloudflare Inc (NYSE: NET): Though Piper Sandler downgraded the cybersecurity stock to Neutral from Overweight, it also raised the target price $141 from $121. The consensus price objective is $124.63.

Cogent Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: COGT): H.C. Wainwright started coverage with a Buy rating and a $25 price target. The posted consensus target is $19.83. The stock was last seen on Friday at $7.60, which was down over 5% for the day.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA): Raymond James downgraded the cable and broadcasting giant to Market Perform from Outperform. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of 440.97 to $61.80 and has a $66.96 consensus price objective.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP): Goldman Sachs downgraded the energy giant to Neutral from Buy on a valuation basis, and it has a $76 price target. The consensus target is $78.49. The last trade on Friday was reported at $74.92.

Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating on the spirits leader and believes the current weakness in the stock presents a nice entry point for investors looking for a strong recovery play. The firm has a $275 price target, which compares with the lower $262.18 consensus and Friday’s closing print of $219.66.

Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE: LLY): The Berenberg upgrade of the legacy pharmaceutical giant to Buy from Hold included a price target hike to $270 from $240. The stock has traded as high as $275.87 in the past 52 weeks but ended Friday’s trading at $233.94.

EMX Royalty Corp. (NYSE: EMX): H.C. Wainwright started coverage with a Buy rating and a $4.50 price target. That was well above Friday’s $2.53 per share closing price.
Energizer Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ENR): Zacks selected this battery maker as its Bear of the Day stock. The analyst pointed out that consumer staples are never the sexiest stocks on Earth. The shares last closed at $38.97, and the consensus price target is $46.69.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM): Exane BNP Paribas downgraded the energy behemoth to Underperform from Neutral and has a $60 price target. The consensus target is higher at $66.55. The stock rose almost 3% on Friday to close at $62.18.

FMC Corp. (NYSE: FMC): KeyBanc Capital Markets downgraded the stock to Sector Weight from Overweight. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $87.27 to $123.66 and have a consensus target price of $120.78. The closing trade for Friday was posted at $89.07.

Hyliion Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: HYLN): The UBS downgrade from Neutral to Sell included the price target slashed to $5 from $14. The consensus target is $11.75. The last trade on Friday hit the tape at $7.82.

SoFi Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SOFI): Morgan Stanley started coverage of the meme stock favorite with an Overweight rating and a $25 price target. The consensus target is $24.50. The last trade for Friday hit the tape at $16.21.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX): Deutsche Bank raised shares of the ubiquitous coffee retailer from Hold to Buy with a $127 price target. The consensus target is $130.07. Friday’s closing trade was reported at $111.22.

Surrozen Inc. (NASDAQ: SRZN): BofA Securities started coverage with a Buy rating and an $11 price target. The shares closed on Friday at $6.39.

Zuora Inc. (NYSE: ZUO): Needham upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold and has a $24 price target. The consensus target is $21.20, and the stock closed Friday at $16.65.

The top large-cap financials likely will post some very solid third-quarter numbers this week. Four stocks look very attractive for growth investors with a longer timeframe, and they can be bought in front of the reports.

Friday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Caesars Entertainment, Charter Communications, Conagra Brands, Corning, General Electric, Home Depot, Plug Power, Sirius XM, 3M and Union Pacific. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Honeywell, Tesla, Ulta Beauty and more.

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