The futures were modestly lower to start off the final trading week for the second quarter. It is a good bet we see some big moves this week as portfolio managers look to close out a very solid quarter for stocks. While all the major indexes finished Friday lower, with the Nasdaq leading the decline with a 1% retreat that snapped an eight-week winning streak, with just a few trading days left, there could very well be follow-up selling as everybody across Wall Street looks to book a solid second quarter.

The buyers returned to the Treasury markets Friday, as yields were down across the board. While the impending recession has perhaps been pushed back, the ongoing inversion between the 10-year note and the shorter maturities continues to be a big concern. The benchmark 10-year note closed Friday at 3.74%, while the two-year paper closed at 4.75%. The 101 basis-point difference is the widest in 40 years.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed mixed, with the former up slightly to close at $74.27 while the latter closed slightly lower at $69.16. It looks like increased demand from China and other Asian refiners could be a solid tailwind for the black gold indexes as we head to the end of the quarter this week. Natural gas was the big winner in the energy complex, closing up 4.65% on Friday at $2.73.

After a very rough week, gold bounced back Friday, closing up 0.35% at $1,930.63. Many top commodity strategists feel that gold can rally in the second half of 2023 if the dollar continues to strengthen. Bitcoin was the huge winner last week, as the cryptocurrency giant finished the week up 3.3% at $30,904, after closing a week ago at $26,837, a massive 15% move higher.

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 Monday, June 26, 2023.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Inc. (NASDAQ: ASO): Wells Fargo resumed coverage with an Overweight rating and a $68 target price. The consensus target is $68.57, and the stock closed on Friday at $49.76.

Accenture PLC (NYSE: ACN): When TD Cowen downgraded the shares to Market Perform from Outperform, it lowered the $325 price target to $300. The consensus target is up at $331.79. The shares closed on Friday at $298.43.
Celsius Inc. (NASDAQ: CELH): Stephens started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $180 target price. The posted consensus target is $146.55. Friday’s final trade was reported at $150.10 a share.

Clorox Co. (NYSE: CLX): Zacks named this as its Bull of the Day stock. The analyst says it is more of an earnings growth story than a revenue growth story. Shares last closed at $156.14, which is up more than 11% year to date.

Fiserv Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV): B. Riley Securities initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $148 price objective. The consensus target is $133.22, and the shares closed on Friday at $114.23.

Fortune Brands Innovations Inc. (NYSE: FBIN): J.P. Morgan resumed coverage with a Neutral rating. The firm also trimmed its $73 target price to $70, bringing it more in line with the $70.40 consensus target. Friday’s closing share price was $67.57.

Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN): Stephens started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $17 target price. The posted consensus target is $146.00. The final trade for Friday was reported at $150.10 a share.

Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA): Though UBS upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral, its $221 target price was reduced to $191. The consensus target is $197.49, and the shares closed on Friday at $118.50.

Planet Fitness Inc. (NASDAQ: PLNT): Exane BNP Paribas downgraded the shares from Neutral to Underperform with a $57 target price. The consensus target is $87.00. The stock closed over 3% lower on Friday at $65.70 due to the downgrade and the weak tape.

Principal Financial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: PFG): Jefferies upgraded the insurance and investment heavyweight to Hold from Underperform. Its $60 target price rose to $65 as well, but the consensus target is higher at $75.33. The close on Friday was at $72.40 a share.

Reinsurance Group of America Inc. (NYSE: RGA): Jefferies downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy and cut its $170 target price to $160. The consensus target is up at $169.08, and Friday’s close at $139.41 a share.

Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SRPT): Evercore ISI downgraded the shares from Outperform to In line with a $139 target price. The consensus target is $174.26. On Friday, shares closed at $114.09, which was down close to 8% for the day despite a positive ruling from the FDA.
Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): B. Riley Securities started coverage on the stock with a Buy rating and an $81 target price. The consensus target is $81.18. The shares closed on at $61.74.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA): DZ Bank downgraded the stock to Sell from Buy and has a $210 target price. The consensus target of $197.41 is far below Friday’s $256.60 closing share price.

Texas Roadhouse Inc. (NASDAQ: TXRH): Wells Fargo initiated coverage on the popular restaurant chain with an Equal Weight rating and a $113 target price. The consensus target is $116.29, and Friday’s close was at $108.81.

Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UAA): When Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight, it slashed its $12 target price to $8. That compares with the $10.50 consensus target and the most recent close at $7.14 a share.

Ventas Inc. (NYSE: VTR): Raymond James upgraded the shares to Strong Buy from Outperform. Its $55 target tops the $54.18 consensus price target, and the stock was last seen trading Friday at $44.47.

Viatris Inc. (NASDAQ: VTRS): Barclays downgraded the stock to Underweight from Equal Weight and has an $11 target price. The consensus target is $14.28, and the stock closed trading on Friday at $9.76.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): Moffett Nathanson upgraded the stock to Market Perform from Underperform, but its $44 target price is less than the $49.17 consensus target. The stock ended Friday trading at $57.34 per share.

Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL): Though Raymond James downgraded the stock to Outperform from Strong Buy, its $82 target price increased to $90. The consensus target is $84.53. The shares closed at $76.28 on Friday.

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Friday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Alcoa, Archer Daniels Midland, Caterpillar, Dow, Expedia, Kellogg, PagSeguro Digital, Sea, Tesla, TripAdvisor and Walmart.

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