Pre-Market Stock Futures:
The futures are trading higher after a seesaw day across Wall Street, where the tech-heavy Nasdaq roared higher. At the same time, the Dow Jones Industrials were crushed, primarily due to a near 20% decline in UnitedHealth Group, Inc. (NYSE: UNH | UNH Price Prediction) following a weak Medicare reimbursement rate proposal for 2027. Health insurer stocks plummeted, dragging down the index, while gains in the technology sector helped other major indices. After all the damage, the Dow Jones Industrials closed Tuesday at 49,003, down 0.83%, while the S&P 500 closed the session at a record high 6,978, up 0.41%. The Nasdaq finished trading at 23,817, up 0.91%. Investors are anxiously awaiting results from Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META), and Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), which all report after the final bell today.
Treasury Bonds:
Yields were mixed across the Treasury curve on Tuesday as sellers came in to take some profit on maturities of 5 years and longer, while buyers were interested in shorter maturities and T-bills. Traders cited upcoming economic data and the Federal Reserve meeting, which concludes today. While most do not expect a rate cut, they will be closely listening to Chairman Powell’s comments on rate cuts later in the year. The 30-year bond closed at 4.84%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last at 4.23%.
Oil and Gas:
Prices were higher across the energy complex on Tuesday as the dreadful frigid weather continued to disrupt the sector, and some fresh geopolitical issues lent a tailwind. With as many as 2 million barrels per day offline due to the storm, crude export flows from Gulf Coast ports even hit zero on Sunday before bouncing back. Brent Crude finished Tuesday at $67.53, up 2.96%, while West Texas Intermediate closed at $62.42, up 2.95%. Natural gas finished the day lower after a massive run over the last week that pushed the commodity up by more than 100%. The final trade was posted at $6.58, down 3.2%. About two weeks ago, Nat Gas traded at $2.70.
Gold:
Gold continued its seemingly daily move higher, adding another 3.4% to finish at $5,186. Silver closed up 8.32% at $112.41. While we have pointed out the various reasons for the staggering move higher by both over the last few years, one of the biggest reasons is liquidity. There is X amount of Gold and Silver that has been mined and is available, and while a landslide of money continues to pour in, there is not a landslide of mined gold being added daily to the reserves. The precious metals team at BMO now sees gold at $8,650 and Silver at $220 by 2027.
Crypto:
The Crypto markets traded in a narrow, somewhat stagnant range on Tuesday, marked by low volume and liquidity and a general “risk-off” sentiment as investors continued to favor precious metals over digital assets. This is a trend we have been watching for the past few months, and it could persist for a while. Investors have been shifting focus toward gold and silver, which have seen significant rallies, while crypto has failed to act as a hedge, as it has been sold. As of 8A EST, Bitcoin was trading at $89,745, while Ethereum was quoted at $3,024.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports daily to identify new investment ideas for both investors and traders. 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.
Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.
Upgrades:
- Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Mizuho, which boosted the target price on the shares to $370 from $275.
- Circle Internet Group Inc. (NYSE: CRCL) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Mizuho, which bumped the target price for the stock to $77 from $70.
- KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR) was raised to Buy from Hold at HSBC with a $144 target price.
- Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ; MCHP) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America, with a $95 target price objective.
- Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Bank of America, which lifted the target price on the legacy tech giant to $235 from $185.
Downgrades:
- Array Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: ARRY) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Baird with an $11 target price.
- BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BJ) was cut to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, which lowered the target price on the stock to $90 from $120.
- Nucor Corp. (NYSE: NUE) was cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS, which actually lifted the target price for the steel giant to $183 from $168.
- PayPal Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: PYPL) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Rothschild & Co. Redburn, which cut the target price for the shares to $50 from $70.
- Plains All American Pipeline LP (NASDAQ: PAA) was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Bank of America with a $19 pric e target.
Initiations:
- Celestica Inc. (NYSE: CLS) was started with a Buy rating at Bank of America with a $400 target price for the company.
- Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Baird with a $240 target price.
- FormFactor Inc. (NASDAQ: FORM) was initiated with a Hold rating at Freedome Capital with a $64 target.
- GE Vernova Inc. (NYSE: GEV) was initiated with a Buy rating at China Renaissance with a $966 target price objective.
- Oklo Inc. (NYSE: OKLO) was started with a Buy rating at Texas Capital, which has set a $138 target price for the stock.
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