The futures were mixed after a huge bounce back Tuesday that saw all the major indexes finish the day solidly higher. Some positive durable goods numbers, huge new home sales and a positive consumer sentiment reading contributed to a tailwind for stocks as portfolio managers continued end-of-quarter window dressing with just three trading days left. With second-quarter earnings right around the corner, and what could end up being a long 4th of July weekend with the national holiday next Tuesday, we could see increased trading activity between now and the close on Friday.

Treasury yields were higher across the curve, after a solid rally had brought buyers in over the past three days. Cooling tensions in Russia and the solid economic data likely contributed to the weakness. The benchmark 10-year paper finished the day at a 3.77% yield, while the short two-year note closed at 4.75%. The inversion between the two suggests to bond trades and others that a recession is on the way.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both finished the day lower, as concerns over demand in the United States put pressure on both. This comes despite the uncertainty in Russia and Chinese efforts to boost its economy with even more new stimulus. Natural gas continued its winning ways, tacking on another 0.40% to close at $2.80. Needless to say, the heatwave across Texas and much of the country provided a solid boost.

Gold finished the day lower, and analysts cited the solid new home sales as one of the reasons for the weakness. Toss in rising consumer confidence numbers, and all the ingredients were in place for a down day, as the bullion finished lower by 0.50% at $1,924. Bitcoin regained the $30,000 level, closing at $30,620. The potential for a strong July for the cryptocurrency giant buoyed the buyers on Tuesday.

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, June 28, 2023.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA): Bernstein downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Outperform and dropped its $130 target price to $98. The consensus target is up at $139.90. The final trade on Tuesday was for $87.13 a share.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL): Bernstein lowered its Outperform rating to Market Perform with a $125 target price. The consensus target is $132.80. Tuesday’s closing share price was $118.33.
Antero Resources Corp. (NYSE: AR): J.P. Morgan’s downgraded to Neutral from Overweight included a target price cut to $30 from $36. The consensus target is $30.23. The stock ended trading on Tuesday at $22.33.

Ballard Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: BLDP): B. Riley Securities downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and trimmed its $6 target price to $5. The consensus target is $6.92. The stock ended Tuesday’s session trading at $4.23.

Coterra Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: CTRA): Though J.P. Morgan upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral, the analyst also trimmed the $33 price target to $31. The consensus target is $30.39. Tuesday’s close was reported at $24.27.

Criteo S.A. (NASDAQ: CRTO): Wells Fargo initiated coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $37 target price. The consensus target is $40.10, and Tuesday’s closing print was $33.02.

Equinix Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX): Truist Financial downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy. The firm also cut its $870 price target to $815, below the $820.40 consensus price. The shares ended Tuesday’s session trading at $765.22.

Frontier Communications Parent Inc. (NASDAQ: FYBR): Wolfe Research started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $27 target price. The posted consensus target is $33.00. The stock closed over 8% higher on Tuesday at $17.53 due to the research coverage.

GE HealthCare Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GEHC): Morgan Stanley started coverage with an Equal Weight rating and a $76 price objective. The consensus target is up at $92.40, and the shares closed on Tuesday at $77.07 apiece.

Guidewire Software Inc. (NASDAQ: GWRE): When Stifel upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold, its $75 target price increased to $85. That compares with the $84.08 consensus target and Tuesday’s closing print of $73.93, which was up almost 8% for the day, after the upgrade and positive commentary.

Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST): Morgan Stanley lowered its Equal Weight rating to Underweight and its $19 target price to $15.50. The consensus target is $20.34. The stock closed on Tuesday at $16.63.

Kellogg Co. (NYSE: K): The Goldman Sachs upgrade was to Buy from Neutral. Its $78 target price jumped to $83, well above the $71.94 consensus target. The stock closed on Tuesday at $66.70.

Olin Corp. (NYSE: OLN): As UBS downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy, it lowered its $68 target price to $53. The consensus target is $65.14, and Tuesday’s closing share price was $49.51.
Rockwell Automation Inc. (NYSE: ROK): Jefferies started coverage with a Hold rating and a $335 target price. The $295.37 consensus target is well below the most recent close at $322.66, which was right near the 52-week high.

Roper Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ROP): Jefferies initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $530 price target. The consensus target is $515.69, and the stock closed on Tuesday at $470.87.

SL Green Realty Corp. (NYSE: SLG): Though BTIG Research reiterated its Buy rating on the stock, the firm also reduced its $84 target price to $70. The consensus target is $30.86. Tuesday’s close at $30.72 was up almost 9% after the company said it sold 50% of one of its biggest New York City office buildings.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. (NYSE: SHO): Morgan Stanley’s upgrade to Equal Weight from Underweight included a target price bump to $10 from $9. The consensus target is $10.18, and the shares ended Tuesday’s session trading at $9.78.

Unity Software Inc. (NYSE: U): Wells Fargo started coverage with an Overweight rating and a $48 target price. The consensus target is $38.09 for now. Tuesday’s close at $42.38 was up over 15%, after the company launched a new AI marketplace.

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ: WING): Northcoast boosted its Neutral rating to Buy and has set a $229 target price. The consensus target is $211.29. The stock closed almost 4% higher on Tuesday at $195.67.

Zillow Group Inc. (NYSE: ZG): Wells Fargo initiated coverage with an Equal Weight rating. Its $50 target price is near the consensus target of $50.70. Tuesday’s close at $49.98 is just shy of a 52-week high, so this may be a valuation call.

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While they may not be as exciting as AI leaders, the seven highest-yielding S&P 500 stocks have incredible cash flow, have paid dependable dividends for years, and are well positioned for the second half of this year.

Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Advance Auto Parts, Alphabet, Biogen, Cheesecake Factory, Chesapeake Energy, Micron Technology, MongoDB, Ross Stores, Tesla and TG Therapeutics.

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