The futures were up on Tuesday, after a big risk-on rally to start the trading week turned into another Nasdaq and S&P 500 beatdown. The two major indexes posted losses once again, and the Dow Jones industrials barely saw a tiny gain. The Nasdaq dropped another 2%, pushing the bear market loss to 22.4% for the year, after closing at the lowest level since 2020.

Financial media pundits initially cited progress in the talks between Russia and Ukraine, in addition to chatter that Russia is actually showing signs of positive negotiations, for a somewhat more positive early tone Monday. Yet, that was all gone by the noon hour. Technology shares slumped as China’s COVID-19 lockdown in Shenzhen could crimp the supply chains for leading companies like Apple and other big players.

Beleaguered drivers across America got some good news as oil prices took another huge leg lower, with Brent crude down 6.1% and West Texas Intermediate a stunning 6.7% lower. Gold prices also were lower Monday, while Treasury yields were up across the board, as the five-year and 10-year notes both hit 52-weeks high yields, as investors anticipate the lift-off of the federal funds rate this week.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding fresh 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 Tuesday, March 15, 2022.

Accenture PLC (NYSE: ACN): Goldman Sachs lowered the price target to $386 from $446 while keeping a Neutral rating on the shares. The shares have traded as high as $417.37 in the past year but closed on Monday at $307.68, down about 26% year to date.

Alignment Healthcare Inc. (NASDAQ: ALHC): Goldman Sachs trimmed the $18 target price to $16 while maintaining a Buy rating. The consensus target is $16.22. The stock’s $8.18 close on Monday was down over 12% for the day.

Bumble Inc. (NASDAQ: BMBL): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating on the dating site operator but lowered the $54 price objective to $42. The consensus target is $35.66. The shares closed Monday’s session at $21.03.

Burlington Stores Inc. (NYSE: BURL): Zacks named this its Bear of the Day stock and suggested that investors should hold off until the earnings story improves. Shares have traded as high as $357.34 in the past year but closed most recently at $194.97, which is down about 33% year to date.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX): Goldman Sachs raised the $154 price on the integrated energy giant to $176 while maintaining a Neutral rating. The consensus target is $157.36. Monday’s final trade was reported at $166.72.

Dril-Quip Inc. (NYSE: DRQ): Tudor, Pickering & Holt lowered its Buy rating to Hold and trimmed the target price to $35 from $38. The consensus target is $30.40. The stock closed Monday at $37.82, which was down over 6% on the day.

Fortive Corp. (NYSE: FTV): Barclays raised its Equal Weight rating to Overweight with a $75 price target. The consensus target is higher at $83.78. Monday’s final trade was reported at $56.96.

Helios Technologies Inc. (NYSE: HLIO): KeyBanc Capital Markets upgraded the stock to Overweight from Sector Weight and has a $90 target price. The consensus target is $101. The stock closed on Monday at $73.26, up almost 4% on the day.

Hormel Foods Corp. (NYSE: HRL): Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock from Neutral to Sell with a $44 target price. The consensus target is $47.38. The stock closed at $50.04 on Monday.

Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (NYSE: IPG): Barclays downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $47 price target to $42. The consensus target is $41.30. Shares closed almost 4% higher on Monday at $34.17.

LTC Properties Inc. (NYSE: LTC): RBC Capital Markets upgraded the shares to Sector Perform from Underperform, and the $34 target price rose to $37, above the $36.13 consensus target. The stock ended Monday trading at $36.44.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) Bernstein started coverage of the popular yoga apparel retailer with an Underperform rating and a $260 target price. The consensus target is a much higher $433.54. Monday’s closing share price was $289.24.

Natera Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRA): Goldman Sachs began coverage with a Buy rating and a $90 price objective. The consensus target is even higher at $113.70, while the stock was last seen trading at $35.89. That was down almost 8% on Monday after a noted short seller went after the stock, posting a very negative report.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE): Bernstein started coverage of the athletic shoe and apparel giant with an Outperform rating and a $160 price objective. The consensus target is $177.03. The stock closed on Monday at $117.57, down over 4% for the day.

Northern Oil and Gas Inc. (NYSE: NOG): Wells Fargo downgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Overweight and has a $34 target price. Johnson Rice raised its Accumulate rating to Buy with a $50 target price. The consensus target is $36.42. The stock was last seen on Monday at $23.84.

NOV Inc. (NYSE: NOV): Citigroup downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and snipped the price target to $21 from $22. The consensus target is $17.79. Monday’s closing trade was reported at $19.79.
Olin Corp. (NYSE: OLN): KeyBanc Capital Markets upgraded the shares from Sector Weight to Overweight with a $64 price objective. The higher consensus target of $74.19, and Monday’s closing print of $51.63 was up just over 6% on the day.

Super Group Ltd. (NYSE: SGHC): Needham started coverage with a Buy rating and an $11 target price. The consensus target is $13.50. The last trade for Monday was reported at $7.97, down 5% for the day.

Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT): Zacks has picked this stock as its Bull of the Day. The analyst makes a case that this retailer keeps hitting the bullseye. Shares most recently closed at $208.76, and the consensus price target is $278.23, which would be an all-time high.

Trip.com Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: TCOM): J.P. Morgan cut its Overweight rating to Neutral and has a $20 price target. The consensus target is up at $38.33, and Monday’s closing print was $16.75 a share, down almost 14% on no reports that we could find.

Tyler Technology Inc. (NYSE: TYL): Barclays began covering the stock with an Equal Weight rating and a $445 target price. This compares with a much higher $539.23 consensus target and Monday’s closing price of $391.15 per share.

Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN): BMO Capital Markets downgraded the giant food processing company to Market Perform from Outperform and cut the $115 price target to $99. The consensus target is $102.64. The closing share price on Monday was $85.50.

Unilever PLC (NYSE: UL): Bernstein upgraded the shares to Market Perform from Underperform. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $43.11 to $61.81 and has a consensus price target of $62. The stock closed on Monday at $44.35.

Zoom Video Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM): Benchmark upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold and has a $124 price target. The consensus target is much higher at $207.73. The stock retreated almost 4% on Monday to close at $94.64.

Most companies detest higher interest rates, as they increase borrowing costs and the overall cost of doing business. But five Warren Buffett picks are likely to be beneficiaries of higher rates, and they pay very solid and dependable dividends to shareholders too.

Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Amazon.com, Caterpillar, Chevron, Constellation Energy, Deere, DocuSign, Kroger, Nokia, Occidental Petroleum, Peloton Interactive, Rivian Automotive, Snap, Uber Technologies and Western Digital. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Alibaba, JD.com, Southwestern Energy, Unilever and more.

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