The futures were trading higher on a solemn day, as we ready to start the trading week after a tepid rally on Friday that saw all the major indexes finish the day higher but close the week on the downside for the first time in three weeks. All eyes this week will be focused on the consumer price index data from August, due out Wednesday morning. In addition, the House of Representatives returns from a summer break with no spending bill in sight, and many are threatening to shut the government down if spiraling spending is not tamped down and the open border is not secured.

Treasury yields were essentially flat across the curve Friday, after some big buying earlier last week. The inflation data is also on the radar of bond traders, as a print above what is expected could lead the Federal Reserve to raise rates again when it meets next week. The 10-year note closed Friday at 4.26%, while the two-year ended the session at 4.99%. The ongoing inversion still signals recession, albeit more likely next year.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude rebounded on Friday, as both of the major benchmarks closed the day higher. Once again, the big recent inventory draws and massive production cuts are supporting the move higher. Plus, some analysts cited short covering as adding to the bullish trend. Brent closed at $90.65, while WTI ended the day at $87.51. Natural gas also closed higher at $2.61.

Gold closed unchanged on Friday after reports filtered out about the ongoing massive purchases by central banks which totaled 55 net tons in July despite some big sales from Turkey. A survey by the Central Bank Gold Reserve indicates that 24% of central banks are looking to increase their holdings of the bullion. The December contract closed the day at $1,942.60. Bitcoin was crushed again Friday closing down 1.4% at $25,911.20.

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 analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Monday, September 11, 2023.

Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE): Mizuho’s upgrade to Buy from Neutral included a target price hike to $630 from $520. That compares with a consensus target of $558.50 and Friday’s closing print of $560.36.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL): Oppenheimer maintained its Outperform rating and has a $220 target price. The consensus target is just $187.13. Friday’s closing print was $178.18.

Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: ACGL): Goldman Sachs initiated coverage with a Neutral rating and an $80 target price. The consensus target is $90.50, and Friday’s final trade was for $77.25.

Asure Software Inc. (NASDAQ: ASUR): Stifel started coverage with a Buy rating and a $15 target price. The consensus target is $19.86, and the stock closed on Friday at $11.56.

Braze Inc. (NASDAQ: BRZE): Goldman Sachs raised its $48 target price on the Buy-rated shares to $55. The consensus target is $46.50. Friday’s $49.13 close up over 3% for the day after quarterly revenues topped estimates.

CBOE Global Markets Inc. (CBOE): BofA Securities resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $168 target price. The consensus target is $155.25, and shares closed at $153.06 on Friday.

ChargePoint Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CHPT): RBC Capital Markets began covering the stock with an Outperform rating and a $9 target price. The consensus target is up at $12.14, but Friday’s closing trade was $5.72 a share.
CSX Corp. (NASDAQ: CSX): BofA Securities raised its Neutral rating to Buy and its $34 target price to $36. The consensus target is $36.31. Friday’s close was at $29.95.

Delek Logistics Partners L.P. (NYSE: DKL): Though Citigroup upgraded the stock to Neutral from Sell, the analyst trimmed the $47 target price to $45. The consensus target is $47, and shares closed on Friday at $41.35.

Digital Ocean Holdings Inc. (NYSE: DOCN): The BofA Securities downgrade to Underperform from Buy included a target price cut to $25 from $47. The consensus target is $39.11. The stock closed on Friday at $26.85.

Essex Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: ESS): Citigroup’s downgrade was to Neutral from Buy, yet the price target rose to $266 from $255. The consensus target is $250.84, and the stock closed on Friday at $225.59.

Everest Group Ltd. (NYSE: EG): Goldman Sachs initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $449 target price. The consensus target is $430.30. Friday’s closing share price was $370.70.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR): Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold but cut its $280 price target to $260. The consensus target is still lower at $246.42, and on Friday the shares closed at $183.21.

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD): As BofA Securities upgraded the biotech giant to Buy from Neutral, its target price increased to $95 from $88. The consensus target is $84.44. The shares closed on Friday at $76, which was up close to 3% on the day.

Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ: LCID): RBC Capital Markets began coverage with Sector Perform and a $6 price target. The $7.58 consensus target is higher, and Friday’s closing shar price was $5.84.

Omega Healthcare Investors Inc. (NYSE: OHI): Mizuho upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral and nudged its $31 target price to $35. The consensus target is $32.50. Friday’s close at $32.11.

Shopify Inc. (NYSE: SHOP): Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform rating with an $80 target price. The consensus target is $66.91, and Friday’s close was at $63.01.

Smartsheet Inc. (NYSE: SMAR): Truist Financial reiterated a Buy rating with a $50 price target. The consensus is $50.54 for now. Friday’s close at $43.03 was up almost 7% for the day after a solid quarterly earnings report.

Snowflake Inc. (NYSE: SNOW): D.A. Davidson started coverage with a Buy rating. Its $200 target price compares with a consensus target of $199.13. The stock closed almost 4% higher on Friday at $165.95.

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Friday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included Bank of America, Cloudflare, Crocs, Dell Technologies, Dollar General, Flex, Goldman Sachs, Home Depot, Lowe’s Companies, McDonald’s, Roku and Seagate Technology.

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