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Wednesday Afternoon Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Altria, BP, Peloton, Pfizer and More
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Markets pulled back on Wednesday despite very solid numbers from the ADP jobs report. The 807,000 in private payrolls added for the month of December completely blew out the consensus estimate of 410,000 job gains. Although the economy is clearly on the road to recovery, big tech needs to get its act together on Wednesday.
24/7 Wall St. is reviewing some big analyst calls seen on Wednesday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on Chevron, GE, Intel, Sirius XM, Under Armour and more.
Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACAD): Citigroup upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and has a $30 price target. Shares were trading around $24 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $28.89.
Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE): The UBS downgrade to Neutral from Buy included a price target cut to $575 from $635. The 52-week trading range is $420.78 to $699.54, and shares were last seen trading near $537.
Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO): BofA Securities lowered its Buy rating to Neutral and cut the price target to $50 from $56. The 52-week range is $40.46 to $52.59, and shares were trading near $49 apiece.
American Tower Corp. (NYSE: AMT): JPMorgan downgraded the shares to Underweight from Neutral, and it cut the $285 price target to $271. Shares were trading around $268 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $304.40.
American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK): UBS’s downgrade to Sell from Neutral came with a price target cut to $176 from $185. Shares were trading around $179 on Wednesday. The 52-week range is $131.01 to $189.65.
Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN): BofA Securities downgraded it to Neutral from Buy and lowered the $285 price target to $255. The 52-week range is $198.64 to $276.69, and shares were trading near $226 apiece.
Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND): BofA Securities resumed coverage with an Underperform rating and cut the $70 price target to $55. Shares were trading around $64 on Wednesday. The 52-week range is $60.42 to $221.00.
BP PLC (NYSE: BP): Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to Underweight from Overweight. Shares were trading around $29 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $35.05.
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CHK): Wells Fargo’s upgrade was from Equal Weight to Overweight with an $84 price target. Shares were trading around $68 on Wednesday, and the 52-week trading range is $40.00 to $69.46.
Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ): Stephens downgraded the shares to Underweight from Equal Weight and has a $500 price target. The 52-week trading range is $319.71 to $567.57, and shares were last seen trading near $528.
Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX): Morgan Stanley raised its Equal Weight rating to Overweight with a $325 price target. Shares were trading around $287 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $296.94.
LoanDepot Inc. (NYSE: LDI): Piper Sandler upgraded it to an Overweight rating from Neutral but trimmed the price target to $8 from $9. Shares were trading around $5 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $9.62.
Murphy Oil Corp. (NYSE: MUR): Wells Fargo’s upgrade was to Equal Weight from Underweight. Shares were trading around $31 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $32.56.
Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE: NOC): Jefferies downgraded it to Hold rating Buy and has a $410 price target. Shares were trading around $393 on Wednesday. The 52-week range is $282.88 to $408.03.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY): Wells Fargo lowered its Equal Weight rating to Underweight and cut the $35 price target to $29. Shares were trading around $34 on Wednesday, and the consensus target price is $41.04.
Peloton Interactive Inc. (NASDAQ: PTON): JPMorgan reiterated an Overweight rating but cut the price target to $50 from $70. Shares were trading around $34 on Wednesday, and the 52-week trading range is $32.39 to $171.09.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and raised the price target to $70 from $59. Shares were trading around $55 on Wednesday. The 52-week range is $33.36 to $61.71.
Pinterest Inc. (NYSE: PINS): Piper Sandler’s upgrade was to Overweight from Neutral, and the firm cut the $58 price target to $53. Shares were trading around $34 on Wednesday, and the 52-week trading range is $32.42 to $89.90.
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN): BofA Securities downgraded it to Underperform from Neutral and cut the price target to $575 from $675. The 52-week trading range is $441.00 to $686.62, and shares were last seen trading near $608.
Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM): UBS downgraded it to a Neutral rating from Buy, and it cut the price target to $265 from $315. Shares were trading around $234 on Wednesday, and the 52-week trading range is $201.51 to $311.75.
3M Co. (NYSE: MMM): The RBC Capital Markets downgrade was to Underperform from Sector Perform. The 52-week trading range is $163.38 to $208.95, and shares were last seen trading near $179.
The top 10 ideas for the first quarter of 2022 from BofA Securities look like outstanding stock picks for growth investors who are a little worried about the potential for volatility this year.
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