The futures traded higher as investors get ready to close out one of the worst weeks for the stock market since the dot-com crash in 2000-2001. The markets were crushed again on Thursday, after the Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points, the largest rate increase in 28 years. In addition, the Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow tracking number is down to flat from 0.9% just a few days ago. The reality for investors is that we are right on the edge of a recession, if not already in one, and the prospects going forward until this rate hiking cycle is complete are somewhat bleak.

All the major indexes, including the transports, hit 52-week lows Thursday, and the only buying across Wall Street was worried investors storming into the safe-haven Treasury market, as yields were down across the curve.

Another negative for investors Thursday was that both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude were up slightly, after trading down big in the morning. Gold was up almost 1% on another safe-haven play, while Bitcoin was hammered once again, closing down almost 7%.

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 Friday, June 17, 2022.

Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACAD): Jefferies upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy with a $25 price target. The consensus target is $29.24. The stock closed on Thursday at $19.51.

Accenture PLC (NYSE: ACN): BofA Securities lowered the price target to $374 from $443 while maintaining a Buy rating in front of the company’s earnings on June 23. The consensus target is near $382, and the last trade for Tuesday was posted at $275.17.

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the biotech giant and has a $295 target price. The consensus target is lower at $250.03. The shares closed trading on Thursday at $230.71.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO): Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal Weight and raised the $2,125 price target to $2,420. The consensus target is $2,171.18. The stock closed Thursday at $2,001.16.
Azek Co. Inc. (NASDAQ: AZEK): Baird maintained an Outperform rating after the company’s analyst day, but the firm lowered its $30 target price to $28. The consensus target is $27.71. Thursday’s close was at $15.79.

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA): Citigroup upgraded the aerospace heavyweight to Buy from Neutral but trimmed the price objective to $209 from $219. The consensus target is near $214, and the stock ended trading on Thursday at $133.36.

Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI): Goldman Sachs lowered the $154 price target on the dining favorite to $128 while keeping a Buy rating. The consensus target is $152.99. The last trade for Thursday was posted at $111.84.

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG): Morgan Stanley raised its Equal Weight rating to Overweight and boosted the $225 price target to $250. The consensus target for the popular discount retailer is $232.23.

Eastman Chemical Co. (NYSE: EMN): Jefferies downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy and slashed the $150 price target to $87. The consensus target is $131.40. The stock closed on Thursday at $87.45.

Etsy Inc. (NASDAQ: ETSY): Oppenheimer lowered the $140 price target to $120 while maintaining an Outperform rating. The consensus target is $141.67. The stock was last seen on Thursday trading at $69.00.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc (NYSE: FIS): Baird reiterated an Outperform rating and has a price objective of $138. The consensus target is lower at $133.50. The final trade Thursday was reported at $90.70.

First Industrial Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: FR): Goldman Sachs cut its $70 price target on the Neutral-rated shares to $61. The consensus target is $66.33. The final trade on Thursday was reported at $90.70.

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating on the legacy delivery giant, which is on the firm’s Conviction List of top stock ideas. The $291 target price is higher than the $288.04 consensus target. The last trade Thursday was reported at $225.31.

Flagstar Bancorp Inc. (NYSE: FBC): Zacks selected this stock as its Bear of the Day. The mortgage business is dead, says the analyst. Shares have traded as high as $56.77 in the past year but closed most recently at $33.54, which is down about 30% year to date.

Guidewire Inc. (NASDAQ: GWRE): Baird lowered the price target to $99 from $118 while keeping a Neutral rating. The consensus target is $102.78. The final trade for Thursday was reported at $70.21.

Intellia Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: NTLA): BofA Securities started coverage with a Buy rating and a $70 price objective. The consensus target is all the way up at $135.35, but Thursday’s closing print was $41.44.
NexTier Oilfield Solutions Inc. (NYSE: NEX) Stifel raised its $14 price target to $17 from while reiterating a Buy rating. The consensus target is $13.85. Thursday’s last trade was reported at $10.16.

Oxford Industries Inc. (NYSE: OXM): This top apparel maker recently raised full-year guidance, points out Zacks, which named it the Bull of the Day stock. The shares last closed at $83.70, and the consensus price target of $114.75 would be an all-time high.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG): Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy with a $147 price target. The consensus target is $147.54. Thursday’s last trade was reported at $121.76.

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE: SPGI): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating with a $402 target price objective. The consensus target is even higher at $416.69. The stock closed on Thursday at $316.03.

Terreno Realty Corp. (NYSE: TRNO): Goldman Sachs trimmed the $79 price target to $70. The analyst has a Neutral rating on the shares. The consensus target is $78.50. Thursday’s close was at $55.58.

Tri Pointe Homes Inc. (NYSE: TPH): B. Riley Securities downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy and lowered the $26 target price to $20. The consensus target is $30.43. The stock was last seen on Thursday trading at $15.63.

Unity Software Inc. (NYSE: U): Benchmark started coverage with a Sell rating and a $27 target price. The consensus target is up at $77.50. The closing share price on Thursday was $32.85.

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ: WBD): J.P. Morgan resumed coverage of the entertainment giant with a Neutral rating and a $22 target price. The consensus target is up at $33.85. Thursday’s final print hit the tape at $13.65.

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Proper asset allocation should always include some holdings of precious metals. Seven top BofA Securities gold stock picks pay quite respectable dividends and look like great ideas now for worried investors.

Also see why one top analyst slashed price targets on four social media giants.

Thursday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Coinbase Global, Continental Resources FedEx, Lam Research, Olin, Planet Labs, Sonos, Southwestern Energy, Spotify Technology, Tapestry and Wheels Up Experience.

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