The futures traded sharply lower after an attack on Israel by Hamas over the weekend. That prompted Israel to declare war on the Iran-backed group. All the major indexes closed Friday higher after a big early sell-off. Once again, soaring interest rates took their toll initially on stocks Friday, after a stunning 336,000 jobs were reported for September, compared with estimates for 170,000. With the resumption of student loan payments, and sharply higher interest rates, many feel that the lagging effects of a year and a half of tightening by the Federal Reserve are just starting to hit the economy. They may hit even harder as we finish out the year.

Treasury yields soared higher across the entire curve on Friday, after the massive jobs report dropped like a bomb on traders. The 10-year benchmark note closed at 4.80%, back near a 16-year high, while the two-year paper finished at 5.08%. The inversion between the two widened substantially on Friday, after it recently had narrowed to the thinnest margin in a year. History indicates the ongoing inversion between the two suggests recession is on the way in 2024.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed higher Friday, after a rough week for the black gold. Oil prices had their sharpest weekly drop in six months, as traders continue to focus on consumer demand. Brent finished trading at $84.46, while WTI closed at $82.86. Both were well over the $90 level just a week ago.

However, oil futures Monday soared over 3% higher after the attack on Israel. Natural gas closed out an outstanding week up over 5% to finish at $3.33, the highest closing print since last January.

Gold also closed higher Friday after a tough week for the bullion. Eeking out a solid gain after first hitting a 10-month low was somewhat impressive, given the much higher-than-expected job numbers. The December contract finished the day up 0.80% at $1,847. Gold futures were almost 1% higher early Monday, after the Israel terrorist attack. Bitcoin closed the day up 2% at $27,967.30.

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, October 9, 2023.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO): Oppenheimer downgraded the stock to Perform from Outperform and lowered its $2,850 target price to $2,600. The consensus target is $2,847.37. The shares closed on Friday at $2.549.04.

Block Inc. (NYSE: SQ): TD Cowen started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $59 target price. The consensus target is up at $78.58. Shares closed at $43.83 on Friday.

Cambridge Bancorp (NASDAQ: CATC): When Keefe Bruyette upgraded the shares to Outperform from Market Perform, its $56 target price jumped to $79.30. The consensus target is $69.77. Friday’s closing share price was $60.22.

Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR): Bernstein started coverage with a Market Perform rating and a $463 target price. The consensus target is $485.48. The shares closed on Friday at $431.16.

Cheniere Energy Inc. (NYSE: LNG): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $205 target price. The consensus target is $197.67. Friday’s close was at $163.35.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA): Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $53 price objective. The consensus target is $49.04. The stock closed on Friday at $44.47.

Elf Beauty Inc. (NYSE: ELF): Jefferies boosted its Hold rating to Buy and its $110 target price to $115. The consensus target is up at $147.67. The stock closed 3.5% higher on Friday at $99.93 due to the upgrade and positive commentary.
Fox Corp. (NASDAQ: FOXA): Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage with a Market Perform rating and a $32 price objective. The consensus target is $36.27. The stock closed on Friday at $30.38.

Frontdoor Inc. (NASDAQ: FTDR): When Truist Financial upgraded the stock to Buy from Hold, its $40 target price rose to $42. The consensus target is $39.80. Friday’s $30.61 close up over 4% for the day on the upgrade.

Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN): TD Cowen started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $150 target price. The consensus target is $147.03. Shares closed at $114.71 on Friday.

Kemper Corp. (NYSE: KMPR): Though Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral, its $55 target price dropped to $47. The consensus target is higher at $68. The shares closed on Friday at $42.19.

Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $20 target price. The consensus target is $20.28. Friday’s close was at $16.26.

MPLX L.P. (NYSE: MPLX): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Buy rating. Its $40 target price compares with a consensus target of $40.31 and Friday’s close at $35.13.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX): Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $482 price objective. The consensus target is $468.97. On Friday, the stock closed at $381.51.

Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA): Zacks selected this as its Bull of the Day stock, citing its rising revenue estimates. Shares last closed at $457.62, and the consensus target of $629.48 would be an all-time high.

PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL): TD Cowen started coverage with a Market Perform rating and a $66 target price. The consensus target is $85.23. Shares closed at $57.77 on Friday.

Shift4 Payments Inc. (NYSE: FOUR): Berenberg started coverage with a Buy rating. Its $87 target price is higher than the $81.67 consensus target. The shares closed on Friday at $55.00.

Shoals Technologies Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SHLS): Piper Sandler upgraded the stock from Neutral to Overweight with a $28 target price. The consensus target is $30.07. The shares were last seen on Friday at $15.15.

TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE: TEL): Cowen upgraded the stock to Outperform from Market Perform. The analyst also raised the $115 target price to $140, but the consensus target is still higher at $148.09. The stock was last seen on Friday trading at $123.97.

Trane Technologies PLC (NYSE: TT): J.P. Morgan upgraded the stock from Underweight to Neutral with a $191 target price. The consensus target is $218.35. The shares closed on Friday at $204.30.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS): Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $93 price objective. The consensus target is $105.84. The stock closed at $82.94 on Friday.

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Six top tech stocks have not had the parabolic move higher that other sector giants have had this year. They are offering excellent entry points, as well as dependable dividends, and so make sense for growth investors looking to generate total return in 2024.

Friday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades included America Movil, Cheesecake Factory, Comerica, Johnson & Johnson, Monster Beverage, O’Reilly Automotive, Shoals Technologies and Wingstop.

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