The futures were trading mixed, after a massive risk-off Tuesday that saw all the major indexes get crushed. Once again, Federal Reserve Chair Powell was the one who got the selling started when he noted in his prepared remarks that interest rates are likely to end up higher than expected. In addition, he noted the possibility for the pace of rate hikes to come faster if incoming data remains hot, so the expected 25-basis-point increases could be on a short leash.

With the nonfarm payrolls for February on the calendar for Friday and the consumer price index data due next week, Powell may be trying to tamp down unnecessary bullishness. From the looks of Tuesday’s results, he likely did.

Treasury yields rose on the short end of the curve, while longer maturities saw some buying on Tuesday. Of course, the bond market continues to keep a close eye on the inversion between the 10-year note, which closed at 3.98%, and the two-year paper, which closed at 5.00%, the highest since 2007. The inversion suggests a recession could be coming.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both closed lower on Tuesday, each down over 3%. While no specific reasons were cited, everything from OPEC rumors to demand in China has kept the benchmarks range-bound over the past 90 days. Some feel the commodity could be poised for a breakout. Natural gas closed up 3%, after a dreadful Monday, at $2.66. Gold and Bitcoin both finished the day 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, March 8, 2023.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: APAM): Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to Sell from Neutral and lowered its $33 target price to $27. The consensus target is $32.92. The last trade on Tuesday was for $31.48 a share, which was down 4% for the day on the downgrade.

Bluebird Bio Inc. (NASDAQ: BLUE): Baird started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $10 target price. The consensus target is $7.33, and Tuesday’s close was at $5.03.

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA): Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating and has a $250 target price. The consensus target is $227.40, and the stock closed on Tuesday at $207.92.
Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ: COIN): Oppenheimer maintained an Outperform rating on the stock and has an $84 target price. The consensus is near $64, and the last trade on Tuesday was recorded at $61.89.

Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA): Truist Financial resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $78 price target. The consensus target is up at $82, but shares closed on Tuesday at $66.60.

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST): Northcoast lifted its Neutral rating to Buy with a $560 target price. The consensus target is $547.16. Tuesday’s close was at $485.15.

CymaBay Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: CBAY): Oppenheimer raised its $10 target price on the Outperform-rated stock to $12. The consensus target is $11.78. The stock closed on Tuesday at $9.02.

Envista Holdings Corp. (NYSE: NVST): BofA Securities raised its target price on the Buy-rated shares to $47 from $43. The consensus target is $45.25. The stock closed on Tuesday at $38.81.

Guidewire Software Inc. (NYSE: GWRE): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating. Its $85 target price objective is well above the $77.88 consensus and Tuesday’s closing print of $75.15, which was up over 5% for the day after revenues topped estimates.

Hesai Group (NASDAQ: HSAI): Credit Suisse started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $28 target price. The consensus target is $27.98. The stock closed almost 3% lower on Tuesday at $18.47 with the very weak tape.

Interactive Brokers Group Inc. (NASDAQ: IBKR): Jefferies maintained a Buy rating with a $104 target price. The consensus target is $102.67. Tuesday’s close was at $88.56.

ITT Inc. (NYSE: ITT): Stifel reiterated a Buy rating. Its $107 target price compares with the $98.60 consensus target and Tuesday’s close at $91.90.

Lightspeed Commerce Inc. (NYSE: LSPD): MoffettNathanson’s downgrade was from Outperform to Market Perform with a $17 target price. The consensus target is up at $29.95. The stock closed lower by 4% on Tuesday at $14.77 following the downgrade.

Mercantile Bank Corp. (NASDAQ: MBWM): Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral. The analyst also bumped the $38 price target to $40, above the $39.30 consensus target. The stock closed on Tuesday at $34.81.
Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK): Goldman Sachs raised its $106 target price on the Buy-rated shares to $122. The consensus target is $118.92. The shares closed on Tuesday at $111.29.

Mineralys Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: MLYS): Stifel initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $45 price target. No consensus target was available as the initial public offering was last month. The shares closed Tuesday at $17.84, down close to 6% on the day.

New Fortress Energy Inc. (NYSE: NFE): Stifel raised its $43 target price on the Buy-rated stock to $49. The consensus target is $56.09, and Tuesday’s close was at $34.36.

NexTier Oilfield Solutions Inc. (NYSE: NEX): Stifel reiterated a Buy rating with an $18 price target. The consensus target is $15.10. Tuesday’s close was at $10.45.

Radius Global Infrastructures Inc. (NASDAQ: RADI): Jefferies downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold with a $15 target price (its reported acquisition price). The consensus target is $14.50. The stock closed on Tuesday at $14.58.

Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF): Truist Financial resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $27 price target. The consensus target is $25.55. The stock closed almost 4% lower on Tuesday at $22.40.

Ryder System Inc. (NYSE: R): Stifel bumped its $105 target price on the Hold-rated stock to $107. The consensus target is $108.43. The shares closed on Tuesday at $96.42.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): Truist Financial lowered its $50 target price to $47 while maintaining a Buy rating. The consensus target is $47.69. The stock ended Tuesday trading at $39.01.

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Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Altria, Apple, D.R. Horton, Equitrans Midstream, Fortinet, General Electric, Nextracker, Palo Alto Networks, Pfizer, Silvergate Capital, Tesla and Verizon Communications.

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