The futures are trading flat as we kick off the first full trading week for the third quarter after a holiday-shortened one start to the month. The major indices closed lower across the board, with the exception of the small-cap Russell 2000 following through on the risk-off move Thursday. With the June jobs report Friday coming in just below expectations after the huge ADP report, all eyes now turn to the consumer price index data for June. While the futures market is pricing in an 89% chance for an increase in the fed-funds rate, an inline or higher inflation print on Wednesday will cement a jump.

Treasury yields were mixed Friday after a huge move higher following the ADP report, which saw the 2-year paper jump over the 5% mark. The big jump brought out the buyers, and the shorter maturity closed Friday at 4.95. With the 10-year benchmark note closing at 4.04%, the inversion has tightened once again but still indicates a recession is in the cards for later this year.

Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate both finished the day and the week higher, and it marks the first time in a while that the two benchmarks have closed higher for 2 weeks in a row. The tailwind remains the extension of the Saudi production cut and another cut from the Russians. Natural gas also closed Friday flat at $2.57.

Gold had a strong Friday finishing the week up almost 1% at $1930.30. This comes after weeks of selling as the dollar firmed and prospects for higher interest rates weighed on the bullion. Bitcoin also rocked 1.16% higher on Friday, finishing a solid week for the crypto by closing at $30,245.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new 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, July 10, 2023.

Alamo Group, Inc. (NYSE: ALG) Raymond James initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and has a $215 target price objective. The consensus target on Wall Street is posted at $215.80. The last trade Friday was reported at $180.13.

Biogen, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating on the biotech leader and has a $360 target price. That compares with a lower $335.93 consensus and Friday’s closing trade of $275.07.

Bloom Energy Corporation (NYSE: BE) RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage with an Outperform rating for the company and a $24 target price. The Wall Street consensus is set at $26.66. Friday’s last trade was posted at $16.69 up almost 8% on the upgraded and positive commentary.

Cedar Fair, L.P. (NYSE: FUN) Citigroup downgraded the theme park giant to Neutral from Buy and cut the target price to $41 from $50 The consensus across Wall Street is set at $51.82. The last trade on Friday came in at $39.24.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) Wolfe Research upgraded the energy leader to Outperform from Peer Perform with a $120 target price objective. That is versus the higher $130.13 consensus and Friday’s last trade of $103.23.

Credicorp Ltd. (NYSE: BAP) Scotiabank upgraded the company to Sector Outperform from Sector Perform and has a $207 target price. The consensus is posted at $159.37. The stock closed Friday at $151.71.

DraftKings, Inc. (NASDAQ: DKNG) Oppenheimer raised their target price on the Outperform rated stock top $36 from $30. The consensus target is posted lower at $29.11. The last trade Friday was reported at $26.65 up almost 6% on the price increase and solid commentary.

Everest Re Group, Ltd. (NYSE: RE) Raymond James upgraded the shares to Strong Buy from Outperform and lifted their target price to $450 from $420. The consensus is set higher at $432.22. Friday’s last trade was reported at $351.28.

Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC) Guggenheim upgraded the shares to Buy from Neutral with a $44 target price. The consensus target is posted at $454.32. The stock closed Friday at $40.96.

FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: FLT) Deutsche Bank started coverage with a Buy rating and a $310 target price. The consensus is set at $252.78. The stock was last seen Friday at $253.49.

Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) JPMorgan downgraded the stock to Neutral from Overweight and dropped the target price to $540 from $576. The consensus is posted at $596.90. The last Friday trade was filled at $430.14.

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) JPMorgan initiated coverage on the legacy technology giant with a Neutral rating to go with a $145 price target. The consensus is just lower at $143.49. The shares closed Thursday at $132.08.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) Wolfe Research upgraded the money center banking leader to Outperform from Peer Perform with a $170 target price objective. That is versus the $140.79 consensus and Friday’s closing trade of $144.34.

Mercury General Corporation (NYSE: MCY) Raymond James downgraded the company to Outperform from Strong Buy and lowered the target price on the shares to $33 from $40. The consensus target is set at $40. The final trade Friday was filled at $29.24.

Newmont Corporation (NYSE: NEM) Barclays upgraded the giant miner to Overweight from Equal Weight and trimmed the target price up to $61 from $62. The consensus target is much higher at $78.17. The stock closed Friday at $44.24, up almost 2% on a spike in gold pricing.

Paramount Global (NASDAQ: PARA) Wolfe Research downgraded the stock to Underperform from Peer Perform with a $14 target. The consensus is set at $18.75. The last trade on Friday was reported at $16.29.

Playtika, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTK) BofA Securities upgraded the company to Neutral from Underperform and lifted their target price to $13 from $10. The consensus is set higher at $13.98. The shares closed trading Friday at $12, up almost 4%.

Tidewater Inc. (NYSE: TDW) Evercore ISI resumed coverage with an Outperform rating and has a $90 target price objective. That compares with the lower $60.33 consensus and Friday’s closing print of $58.61 up close to 8% on the resumption of coverage and the big price target.

WEX Inc. (NYSE: WEX) Deutsche Bank started coverage with a Hold rating and a $190 target price. The consensus is set at $218.55. The stock was last seen Friday at $184.97.

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Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE: WSM) Barclays downgraded the high-end retailer to Underweight from Equal Weight and chopped the target price to $115 from $126. The consensus target is higher at $124.95. The shares closed Friday at $120.93, down almost 3% on the downgrade.

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