The futures were trading flat Wednesday, as the big day finally has arrived as virtually everybody across Wall Street expects another 75-basis-point increase in the federal funds rate. All the major indexes closed lower Tuesday, after a solid open that was spurred on by lower interest rates. That all dissipated by midday as sellers took the upper hand into the afternoon session. After the Federal Reserve meeting and announcement Wednesday afternoon, all eyes will turn to Friday and the October nonfarm payrolls report.

Interest rates ended mixed Tuesday, after the aforementioned early strength in the Treasury market. The benchmark 10-year note opened at 3.94%, but sellers drove the yield to 4.05% by the close. The inversion with the two-year note remained in place, with the short paper closing at 4.55%.

The energy complex had a big day, as both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed up right at 2%, with Brent near the $95 level. Traders and analysts noted that Brent could trade over the $100 level again when the European Union Russian oil imports by sea embargo kicks in next month. Natural gas gave back some of Monday’s massive gains, down over 9% to close at $5.85. Gold traded higher on the day, while Bitcoin closed modestly lower.

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, November 2, 2022.

Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED): Jefferies maintained a Buy rating with a $150 target price. The consensus target is just $126.07. Tuesday’s final trade was for $95.12 a share.

AppLovin Corp. (NASDAQ: APP): Stifel reiterated a Buy rating but cut its $50 target price to $30. The consensus target is $45.65. Tuesday’s closing share price was $17.12.

Arista Networks Inc. (NYSE: ANET): BofA Securities upgraded the stock to Buy from Underperform and hiked its $105 target price to $150. The consensus target is $142.34. The shares closed over 5% higher on Tuesday at $271.71 on a third-quarter earnings beat.

Bloomin’ Brands Inc. (NASDAQ: BLMN): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the shares, which reside on its Franchise Picks list of top picks. Its $35 target price compares with a $27.38 consensus target and the most recent close at $23.67.

Centerspace (NYSE: CSR): As Piper Sandler downgraded the stock to Neutral from Overweight, it reduced its $85 target price to $70. The consensus target is $83.14 for now. The stock closed on Tuesday at $67.06, down over 3% for the day. The company posted a third-quarter net loss per share.
Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW): Credit Suisse lowered its Outperform rating on the legacy discount broker to Neutral and has an $84 target. The consensus target is $90.50. Tuesday’s close was at $79.89.

Compass Pathways PLC (NASDAQ: CMPS): Loop Capital initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $34 target price. The consensus target is up at $62. The shares closed on Tuesday at $10.65.

Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NYSE: DECK): BofA Securities resumed coverage on the popular retailer with a Buy rating and a $425 target price. The consensus target is $404.50. The shares closed almost 4% higher on Tuesday at $362.98.

EDAP TMS S.A. (NASDAQ: EDAP): Jefferies initiated coverage with a Buy rating and an $11 price target. The consensus target is $11.20. Tuesday’s close was at $9.43.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR): The Barclays upgrade to Equal Weight from Underweight included a price target boost from $89 all the way to $162. The consensus target is $152.02. The stock closed on Tuesday at $148.57.

Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating with a $133 target. The consensus target is $154.89. Tuesday’s close was at $113.67.

Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL): Suggesting that the oil services giant is riding a tailwind into 2023, Zacks selected it as its Bull of the Day stock. Shares last closed at $36.50, and the $43.96 consensus price target is very close to the 52-week high.

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: LPLA): Credit Suisse upgraded the broker-dealer to Outperform from Neutral and has a $315 target price. The consensus target is just $281.75. The stock ended Tuesday trading at $259.71.

Meritage Homes Corp. (NYSE: MTH): This homebuilder stock is the Zacks Bear of the Day. The analyst points out that 7% rates are hitting home builders hard. Shares have traded as high as $125.01 in the past year but closed most recently at $76.78. That is down almost 13% in the past 90 days.

Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST): J.P. Morgan’s upgrade to Overweight from Neutral came with a target price hike to $106 from $96. The consensus target is $100.58. Tuesday’s close was at $94.35.

NXP Semiconductor N.V. (NASDAQ: NXPI): Oppenheimer reiterated its Outperform rating with a $175 target price. The consensus target is $183.88. Tuesday’s close at $151.85 was up almost 4% for the day after solid results that beat estimates were posted.

NorthWestern Corp. (NASDAQ: NWE): J.P. Morgan initiated coverage with a Neutral rating and a $55 target price. The consensus target is $56.57. The stock closed on Tuesday at $52.85.

QuantumScape Corp. (NYSE: QS): Goldman Sachs trimmed its $9 target price on the Neutral-rated shares to $8. The consensus target is up at $13.20. The shares closed on Tuesday at $8.28.
RPT Realty (NYSE: RPT): Credit Suisse cut its Outperform rating to Neutral with a $10 target price. The consensus target is $11.45. The stock closed on Tuesday at $9.32.

Steven Madden Ltd. (NASDAQ: SHOO): Wedbush’s downgrade was to Neutral from Outperform, and it cut its $43 price target to $29. The consensus target is $37.72, while Tuesday’s last trade came in at $29.82.

Stryker Inc. (NYSE: SYK): Canaccord Genuity downgraded the medical devices heavyweight to Hold from Buy. It also lowered the $225 target price objective to $200, while the consensus target is up at $238.33. Tuesday’s close was at $220.09.

Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC): Goldman Sachs lowered its $93 target price to $80 but stuck with a Buy rating. The consensus target is $64.11. Tuesday’s close at $45.65 was up almost 3% on the day.

Trex Co. (NYSE: TREX): Stifel lowered the $68 price target to $60 but kept its Buy rating. The consensus target is $59.25. The stock closed over 8% lower on Tuesday at $44.09 after a third-quarter earnings miss.

Universal Health Services Inc. (NYSE: UHS): Though Goldman Sachs maintained a Sell rating, it raised its $110 target price to $121. The consensus target is $119.18, and the stock closed on Tuesday at $117.32.

Union Pacific Corp. (NYSE: UNP): The Sector Perform rating at RBC Capital Markets was cut to Underperform, and the $200 target price on the railroad giant fell to $187. The consensus target is $215.46, and the stock closed on Thursday at $196.82.

Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL): As Raymond James cut its Strong Buy rating to Outperform, it lowered the $81 target price to $70. That compares with the $81.60 consensus target and Tuesday’s closing print of $60.10.

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Six blue-chip stocks with big payouts have been ignored or abandoned and are trading incredibly cheaply. For long-term investors searching for stability and passive income, they offer strong total return potential for 2023 and beyond.

Tuesday’s early top analyst upgrades and downgrades included ADT, Boeing, Dell Technologies, DraftKings, LyondellBasell Industries, Newell Brands, NetApp, Petróleo Brasileiro, Uber Technologies and Wingstop. Analyst calls seen later in the day were on Carvana, Exxon Mobil, Horizon Therapeutics, Norfolk Southern, Principal Financial, Under Armour, Ventas and more.

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