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Ahead of October Nonfarm Payrolls, Analysts Upgrade or Downgrade Altice USA, Fisker and More
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Just when many investors thought the possibility of a Federal Reserve pivot was on the table, Federal Reserve Chair Powell blew that up, after lifting the federal funds rate by 75 basis points to a range of 3.75% to 4.00% and sprinkling in some very unambiguous hawkish commentary at his press conference. The bottom line: rates will be held higher for longer until inflation slows.
All the major indexes traded lower approaching midday, after Wednesday’s roller-coaster ride that saw a massive intraday move that buried stocks by the close. With earnings for the third quarter starting to wind down, Friday’s nonfarm payrolls will not be the crucial data point it was prior to the no-pivot-for-you stance. That noted, it still will be in the mix for December.
Here, 24/7 Wall St. is reviewing additional analyst calls seen on Wednesday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Upgrades and downgrades seen earlier in the day were on Canopy Growth, Cleveland-Cliffs, Datadog, Electronic Arts, Palo Alto Networks, Peloton, Snowflake, SoFi and more.
Alkermes PLC (NASDAQ: ALKS): Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral and raised its $26 price target to $30. The consensus target is $31.89. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $21.24 to $32.79, and shares were trading near $24.90 Thursday, up well over 3% for the day.
Altice USA Inc. (NYSE: ATUS): Pivotal Research’s downgrade to Hold from Buy included a target price cut to $5 from $15. The consensus target is $12.70 for now. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $4.99 to $18.59. The shares were trading near $4.73 Thursday, down almost 25% from the prior close after profits plunged and the firm missed estimates.
Fisker Inc. (NYSE: FSR): When RBC Capital Markets downgraded the stock to Sector Perform from Outperform, it also lowered its $13 target price to $8. The consensus target is $14.11. The 52-week trading range is $6.41 to $23.75. The stock was trading near $8.10 on Thursday.
Freshpet Inc. (NASDAQ: FRPT): Citigroup raised its Sell rating to Neutral, and its prior $32 target price is now $66. The consensus target is $66.65. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between $36.02 and $156.67. The shares were near $64.53 Thursday, up over 2% on the day. The company posted solid results earlier this week.
Keysight Technologies Inc. (NYSE: KEYS): Wells Fargo started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $200 target price. The consensus target is $195.77. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $127.93 to $209.08. The stock was trading near $166.25 on Thursday.
Lincoln National Corp. (NYSE: LNC): Morgan Stanley downgraded the insurance giant from Overweight to Equal Weight with a $54 target price. The consensus target is $57. The 52-week trading range is $43.01 to $76.40. The stock was trading near $35.35, down a stunning 32% after posting a third-quarter loss.
Maravai LifeSciences Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: MRVI): BofA Securities downgraded the company to Neutral from Buy. It also cut its $32 price target almost in half to $17. The consensus target is $34.33 for now. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $15.20 to $46.29 and were trading near $14.60 on Thursday, which was down over 5% on the day.
Power Integrations Inc. (NASDAQ: POWI): Cowen cut its Outperform rating to Market Perform and slashed the $90 target price objective to $65. The consensus target is $82.33. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $60.01 to $110.43. Despite posting solid results, the stock was trading near $64.15 Thursday, down over 3%.
Radware Ltd. (NASDAQ: RDWR): The downgrade at Jefferies was to Hold from Buy, and it has a $22 target price. The 52-week trading range is $19.34 to $42.19. The shares were trading near $18.30 on Thursday, down close to 8% after posting earnings and revenues that lagged estimates.
Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: RARE): Baird upgraded the stock to Outperform from Neutral and has a $50 price objective. The consensus target is up at $107. The 52-week trading range is $36.67 to $88.22. The stock traded near $39.50 on Thursday.
Six top financial institutions in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio likely are applauding the Federal Reserve’s latest increase in the federal funds rate as it means more earnings for them. These Warren Buffet stocks also come with solid dividends and are rated Buy across Wall Street.
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