The futures were lower Wednesday, after a solid risk-off day that saw all the major indexes, the Russell 2000 and the transports end higher. Much of the positive move was prompted by some serious dip-buying activity on the top technology names, many of which have been absolutely hammered this year. Solid earnings and guidance from big retailers and the top airline stocks was also a strong tailwind. Another huge plus was the news that COVID-19 restrictions in Shanghai and Hong Kong will be relaxed, which could help the ongoing supply chain issues.

Another bit of good news for consumers was that oil prices, which have been on a tear the past week, backed up some Tuesday. Both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed down, while natural gas continued its climb, closing up almost 5%, over the $8 mark again.

Yields were up across the Treasury curve, with the 10-year note moving back toward the 3% level. Gold closed the day lower, while Bitcoin traded marginally higher but closed under $30,000.

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 Wednesday, May 18, 2022.

Alliant Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: LNT): BofA Securities raised its Underperform rating to Neutral and slid the $57 target price up to $60. The consensus target is $64.33. The stock was last seen on Tuesday trading at $59.75.

Camden Property Trust (NYSE: CPT): Goldman Sachs downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and lowered the $172 price objective to $158. The consensus target is $181.90. The shares closed on Tuesday at $143.17.

Cooper Inc. (NYSE: COO): Though Citigroup upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral, it also lowered the $460 target price to $405. The consensus target is $476. The stock closed almost 4% higher on Tuesday at $340.24.

Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS): Zacks selected this retailer as its Bull of the Day stock, citing its more than 1,400% surge since the March 2020 market bottom. The shares last closed at $323.89, which is up more than 32% year to date. However, the consensus target price is just $240.00.

Essex Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: ESS): Goldman Sachs boosted its Sell rating all the way to Buy, a double upgrade, but it trimmed the $352 target price to $338. The consensus target for the REIT giant is $360.77. The final trade for Tuesday was at $296.00 a share.
Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the retail giant, with a $420 price target, after the company reported outstanding earnings for the quarter. The consensus target is $372.91. The final trade for Tuesday was reported at $300.95.

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG): Goldman Sachs slashed the $369 price target on the Buy-rated robotic surgical giant to $319. The consensus target is $335.53. The stock closed on Tuesday at $225.18.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT): Benchmark started coverage with a Buy rating and a $215 target price. The consensus target is 205.71. Tuesday’s closing share price was $178.97.

Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA): Goldman Sachs initiated coverage on the credit card heavyweight with a Buy rating and a $460 target price. The consensus target is $433.10. Tuesday’s final trade was reported at $338.86.

McDonald’s Inc. (NYSE: MCD): Baird stuck with an Outperform rating on the fast-food giant, with a $283 price target, after the company announced its departure from Russia. The consensus target is $280.54. The stock closed at $241.63 on Tuesday.

Molson Coors Brewing Co. (NYSE: TAP): Bernstein downgraded the beer giant to Market Perform from Outperform and has a $59 price objective. The consensus target is $57.06. Shares ended Tuesday’s trading at $55.85.

Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST): Bernstein upgraded the shares of the energy drink giant to Outperform from Market Perform to Outperform and boosted the $97 target price to $110. The consensus target is $99.84. The stock closed at $89.23 on Tuesday.

Penn National Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN): Jefferies raised its Hold rating to Buy with a $49 target price. The consensus target is $57.47. The shares closed nearly 4% higher on Tuesday at $30.92.

Q2 Holdings Inc. (NYSE: QTWO): Stephens downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $65 target price to $50. The consensus target is $74.58. The shares closed up a stunning 22% on Tuesday at $51.36, after reports indicated there was takeover interest in the company.

Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: RYAAY): Raymond James upgraded the European airline giant from Outperform to Strong Buy with a $125 target price. The consensus target is $121.60. The stock closed almost 5% higher on Tuesday at $84.62.

Shoals Technologies Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SHLS): Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating on the stock but trimmed the $22 price target to $19. The consensus target is $27. Tuesday’s $13.42 close was up almost 11% on the day, after the company posted solid quarterly results.
Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX): Citing future earnings estimates that have been on the decline, Zacks named this stock as its Bear of the Day. Shares have traded as high as $126.32 in the past year but closed most recently at $73.72. That is about 37% lower year to date.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO): Baird maintained an Outperform rating on the shares but slashed the $210 price target to $145. The consensus target is $200.81. The stock closed almost 12% higher to $123.08 on Tuesday, after the company posted outstanding quarterly results.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Neutral from Underperform and has a $9 target price. The consensus target is $10.81, and the shares closed over 6% higher on Tuesday at $8.40.

Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ: ULTA): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating in front of the earnings report due on May 26. The analyst’s $470 target price compares with the $445.64 consensus target and Tuesday’s close at $393.01.

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ: UPWK): Stifel downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy and cut the $30 target price to $20. The consensus target is $35. The stock closed on Tuesday at $16.94.

Weber Inc. (NYSE: WEBR): Goldman Sachs slashed its $11 price target on the Neutral-rated shares to $7. The consensus target is $11.67. The stock closed at $6.95 on Tuesday.

Warby Parker Inc. (NASDAQ: WRBY): Baird maintained an Outperform rating but lowered the $40 target price to $30. The consensus target is $37.67. The stock almost 6% higher on Tuesday at $17.47.

Workday Inc. (NASDAQ: WDAY): UBS’s downgrade was to Neutral from Buy. Over the past 52 weeks, shares have traded between $168.90 and $307.81 and have a $308.88 consensus target. The stock closed on Tuesday at $173.34.

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Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Advanced Micro Devices, Block, Bumble, DigitalOcean, Duke Realty, FirstEnergy, HF Sinclair, Nio, Petco Health and Wellness, Roblox, Rocket Companies, SoFi Technologies and Walt Disney.

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