The futures were mixed, after a second straight day of selling turned into an afternoon rally before all the major indexes sold off again into the close and finished lower. The song remains the same, as the Fitch downgrade of the U.S. government debt was still eyed as the culprit, spurring the selling along Thursday. All eyes turned to the latest nonfarm payroll report, which came in slightly lower than expected. That, plus a big backup in yields for the second straight day on Wednesday, is adding to the risk-off attitude. Some top strategists feel that hedge fund selling also contributed to the overall trend, as overbought conditions have sparked many investors to take profits.

The Treasury yields jumped in a big way, with the longer maturities getting hit hard. It did not help when hedge fund manager Bill Ackman said his fund was shorting the 30-year long Treasury bond, which closed at 4.29%. Treasury yields move inversely, so as the short sellers continue to pound the bid and sell, the bond trades down and the yield goes higher. The 10-year note closed at 4.18%, the highest since October of 2022. The two-year ended the day at 4.88%. While the inversion recently has narrowed to 70 basis points from well over 100, recession still looks possible.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both rebounded from Wednesday’s drubbing after Saudi Arabia announced it will extend its 1 million barrel per day output cut through September. Russia also announced it would cut its oil exports by 300,000 barrels per day in September. Brent closed up 2.5% at $84.27, while WTI finished up 2.86% at $81.76. Natural gas also closed up 3.31% at $2.56.

Gold was modestly lower Thursday, despite the ISM services index data dropping more than expected in July. While still over the 50% level at 52.7%, which indicates growth in the economy, the recession risk is still in the cards as rates move higher. The December contract closed modestly lower Thursday at $1969.30. Bitcoin also rebounded, closing at $29,259.20, up 0.33%.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each weekday 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 Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Friday, August 4, 2023.

Crestwood Equity Partners Inc. (NASDAQ: CEQP): Citigroup’s downgrade to Neutral from Buy included a target price trim to $28 from $30. The consensus target is $29.22. Thursday’s final trade was reported at $27.40 a share.

Doximity Inc. (NYSE: DOCS): Piper Sandler cut its Overweight rating to Neutral and its $38 target price to $36. The consensus target is $37.23. The shares closed on Thursday at $33.24.

DXC Technology Co. (NYSE: DXC): Citigroup downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. The analyst also lowered the $39 target price to $31, below the consensus target of $35.50. Thursday’s close at $19.08 was down 30% for the day due to an earnings miss and guidance cut.
Etsy Inc. (NYSE: ETSY): As Bernstein downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Outperform, its target price fell to $105 from $120. The consensus target is $114.13. The stock closed on Thursday at $82.92.

Extreme Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: EXTR): B. Riley Securities downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy but raised its $25 target price to $30. The consensus target is $30.07. The stock closed on Thursday at $29.69.

Fiverr International Inc. (NYSE: FVRR): BTIG Research reiterated a Buy rating and changed its target price to $44 from $40. The consensus target is $42.00. The stock closed almost 18% higher on Thursday at $33.60 after the company topped earnings and revenue estimates.

Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA): Deutsche Bank’s downgrade was from Buy to Hold with a $125 target price. The consensus target is up at $183.68. The stock closed on Thursday at $109.95.

PagSeguro Digital Ltd. (NYSE: PAGS): UBS upgraded the shares to Buy from Neutral. The firm also raised its $12 target price to $14, while the consensus figure is $12.67. The stock closed at $10.64 on Thursday.

Qorvo Inc. (NASDAQ: QRVO): Exane BNP Paribas upgraded the stock to Outperform from Neutral and has a $135 price target. The consensus target is $106.92. The shares ended Thursday trading at $105.84 apiece.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM): Deutsche Bank’s downgrade to Hold from Buy included a price target reduction to $121 from $130. The consensus target is $136.36 for now. Thursday’s $118.70 close was down over 8% for the day in the wake of mixed results and a disappointing forecast.

Roku Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU): Citigroup downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy, but it also raised its $75 target price to $105. The consensus target is $77.26. Thursday’s close was at $88.47.

Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST): TD Cowen boosted its Market Perform rating to Outperform and its $113 target price to $129. The consensus target is $119.70. Thursday’s final trade was for $112.59 a share.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL): Zacks makes the case that its Bull of the Day stock has much more room to run. Shares last closed at $104.72, and the $115.58 consensus target would be a multiyear high.

Royal Gold Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD): Investors may want to be cautious for now about its Bear of the Day stock, says Zacks. Yet, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold, though its $145 target price is less than the consensus target of $146.08. The shares closed at $112.61 on Thursday.
Simon Properties Group Inc. (NYSE: SPG) Evercore ISI downgraded the stock to In Line from Outperform and trimmed its $131 target price to $129. The consensus target is $131.57. The shares were last seen on Thursday trading at $118.37, down almost 5% for the day on mixed earnings and the downgrade.

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV): The Jefferies downgrade was from Hold to Underperform with a $25 target price. The consensus target is $38.61 for now. The shares closed over 3% lower on Thursday at $32.26 due to the downgrade.

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPR): Truist Financial’s downgrade to Hold from Buy came with a target price cut to $25 from $42. The consensus target is $34.64, and Thursday’s closing print of $22.35 was down over 2% on the day.

STAAR Surgical Co. (NASDAQ: STAA): Canaccord Genuity downgraded it to Hold from Buy and slashed the $77 target price to $48. The consensus target is $71.78 for now. Thursday’s $47.28 close was down almost 10% for the day despite an earnings beat.

StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ: STNE): UBS’s upgrade was to Buy from Neutral, and its $14 target price increased to $18. The consensus target is $14.33, and the stock closed on Thursday at $13.83.

Thomson Reuters Corp. (NYSE: TRI): The Underperform rating at Exane BNP Paribas changed to Neutral, and the $100 target price rose to $115. That compares with a $129.75 consensus target. Wednesday’s close at $131.08 was down almost 5% for the day.

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): Though Wells Fargo upgraded the stock to Overweight from Underweight, it also reduced its $135 target price to $100. The consensus target is
just $60.07, but the stock ended Thursday trading at $84.61. That was up over 16% for the day due to the upgrade and outstanding quarterly results.

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ: WING): Benchmark’s upgrade was from Hold to Buy with a $200 target price. The consensus target is $204.82. Thursday’s close was at $165.53.

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Seven top picks from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway portfolio look poised to do very well this year and they pay dependable dividends, making them ideal stocks for nervous investors in what could be about to become a very volatile market.

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Thursday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Advanced Micro Devices, Caesars Entertainment, Caterpillar, CrowdStrike, Crown Castle, Electronic Arts, Estee Lauder, KeyCorp, Match, Norwegian Cruise Line, Sirius XM, SoFi Technologies and TG Therapeutics.

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