Tuesday morning futures were holding barely positive after the Bureau of Labor Statistics released record inflation data. A closer look at the report shows that the inflation data is not looking pretty, and there could be big implications in the coming months. Analysts were expecting to see the consumer price index inflation print come in at an 8.4% year-over-year increase, whereas the number came in closer to 8.5%, which would be the single biggest leap since 1981.

As we already know, the Federal Reserve is watching this number closely, as well trying to figure out by how much to boost interest rates in the coming months. The minutes from the Fed’s March meeting suggest that a 50-basis-point interest rate hike is on the table soon. After Tuesday’s inflation numbers, this seems even more likely.

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, April 12, 2022.

Aptiv PLC (NYSE: APTV): Wells Fargo upgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Underweight and raised the price target to $112 from $108. The consensus target is $162.04. The last trade on Monday was reported at $108.21 a share.

Brighthouse Financial Inc. (NASDAQ: BHF): Wells Fargo upgraded the shares to Equal Weight from Underweight and raised the $53 price target to $54. The consensus target is $58.10, and Monday’s closing share price was $51.57.

Cardinal Health Inc. (NYSE: CAH): Morgan Stanley’s upgrade was from Equal Weight to Overweight with a $74 price target. The consensus target is $57.23. The final trade for Monday was reported at $61.38.

Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW): Compass Point raised its rating to Buy from Neutral and has a $98 price target. The consensus target is $106.23. The last trade Monday was for $81.58 a share.

Chegg Inc. (NYSE: CHGG): KeyBanc Capital Markets lowered its Overweight rating to Sector Weight. The consensus target is $45.00. Monday’s close was at $35.29 a share.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO): Citigroup’s downgrade to Sell from Neutral included a price target cut to $45 from $65. The consensus target is $63.91. The stock closed Monday at $52.88.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD): Goldman Sachs upgraded the shares to Buy rating Neutral and raised the $241 price target to $285. Shares last closed at $216.60 and have a consensus price target of $270.48.

Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ): Citigroup upgraded it to Buy rating Neutral and raised the $480 price target to $487. The consensus target is $468.49, and shares last closed at $387.92 apiece.

Ferrari N.V. (NYSE: RACE): Exane BNP Paribas lifted its Neutral rating to Outperform. The consensus target is $209.64. The closing share price on Monday was $220.76.

F5 Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV): Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $280 price target to $250. The consensus target is $243.38. Monday’s close was at $207.49.
Franklin Resources Inc. (NYSE: BEN): Keefe Bruyette’s Outperform rating was lowered to Market Perform with a $30 price target. Citigroup downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy and cut the $44.50 price target to $28. The consensus target is $32.50. The stock closed Monday at $26.18.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. (NYSE: HPE): As Morgan Stanley downgraded it to Underweight from Equal Weight, it also cut the $17 price target to $15. The stock has traded as high as $17.76 a share in the past year but closed most recently at $15.81.

Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR): Citigroup’s upgrade to Neutral from Sell and included a price target hike to $36 from $25. The consensus target is $35.69. The stock closed at $34.41on Monday.

Krispy Kreme Inc. (NASDAQ: DNUT): Citigroup downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy and cut the $24 price target to $16. The consensus target is $17.78. The last trade on Monday was reported at $13.59.

Louisiana-Pacific Corp. (NYSE: LPX): T.D. Securities upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold and has a $75 price target. The 52-week range is $50.12 to $79.77. The last trade Monday was for $59.32.

NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP): Morgan Stanley’s downgrade to Equal Weight from Overweight included a price target cut to $91 from $102. The consensus target is $98.53, and shares were last seen trading at $77.12.

Ping Identity Holding Corp. (NYSE: PING): Zacks named this as its Bear of the Day stock. The analyst points out that, after a recent earnings miss, shares of this Denver-based security software company have moved higher despite lower estimates. The stock has traded as high as $30.25 in the past year and closed most recently at $28.18.

Rapid7 Inc. (NASDAQ: RPD): Goldman Sachs downgraded it to Neutral from Buy and has a $130 price target. The consensus target is $131.25. The stock closed on Monday at $111.95.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX): Citigroup cut its Buy rating to Neutral and lowered the $120 price target to $91. The consensus target is $111.32. The stock closed on Monday at $80.68.

Verint Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: VRNT): The Goldman Sachs downgrade was from Buy to Neutral with a $57 price target. Shares closed at $51.40 on Monday, in a 52-week range of $41.46 to $54.74.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM): BMO Capital Markets downgraded the shares to Market Perform from Outperform and has a $174 price target. Shares closed at $164.16 on Monday, in a 52-week range of $133.15 to $168.04.

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Monday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alibaba, AT&T, Baidu, Bilbili, CommScope, JetBlue Airways, Navient, Nvidia, Pinduoduo, Schlumberger, Sea, State Street, Truist Financial, U.S. Bancorp and Wells Fargo. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on American Express, Bank of New York Mellon, Citizens Financial, EQT, Masco, Regions Financial, Rivian Automotive and more.

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