Pre-Market Stock Futures:
The futures are trading lower as we get set to conclude one of the zaniest trading weeks the stock market has seen in a long time. Despite crushing analysts’ earnings estimates and giving forward guidance above consensus, Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction) initially opened higher amid a rush of retail buying. Still, the bottom fell out as sellers quickly took control. When it was all said and done, the stock closed trading at $184.74, down a stunning 5.5%. The proverbial “buy the rumor, sell the news” day for the tech giant. While the major indices closed off their lows, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.04% to 49,499, the Nasdaq was hammered, down 1.18% to 22,878. The S&P 500 was last seen at 6,908, down 0.54%, while the small-cap Russell 2000 ended the session as the winner for the day, up 0.58% at 2,678.
Treasury Bonds:
As expected, the equity market beatdown prompted investors to run to safe-haven trades, and the easiest is always the U.S. Treasury market. Yields were down across the curve as the buyers returned. There is a general anxiety across equities as the non-stop three-year rally is looking very tired. So the move to government debt makes sense. The 30-year-long bond finished the day at 4.66%, while the benchmark 10-year note closed at 4.01%.
Oil and Gas:
The energy complex was virtually unchanged on the day, as the looming threat of military action against Iran remains front and center on the geopolitical stage. Despite a global oversupply, oil prices have stayed firm. Brent Crude closed Thursday at $70.87, up just 0.02%, while West Texas Intermediate was last seen at $65.41, down just 0.02%. Natural gas closed lower by 1.53% at $2.82.
Gold:
Gold continued its upward grind, and as with government bonds, the rush to safe-haven assets always bodes well for bullion. The last trade on Thursday came in at $5,194, up 0.53%, while Silver finished the day flat, with the last print at $88.65, down 0.63%.
Crypto:
The cryptocurrency markets experienced a slight downward consolidation on Thursday, with total market capitalization dropping approximately 2% to around $2.39 trillion. This movement followed a sharp, volatile recovery in which the crypto giant rallied off earlier lows in the week, leading to a calmer, albeit slightly bearish, session yesterday as investors digested recent price action. At 8 AM EST, Bitcoin traded at $65,770, while Ethereum traded at $1,960.
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 Friday, February 28, 2026.
Upgrades:
- American Electric Power Company Inc. (NYSE: AEP) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS, with a $132 target price.
- Block Inc. (NYSE: XYZ) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley, which lifted the target price for the shares to $93 from $72.
- Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PLTR) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS, with a $180 target price.
- PENN Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Wells Fargo, which nudged the target price for the stock to $16 from $15.
- Southwest Airlines Company (NYSE: LUV) was raised to Buy from Hold at TD Cowen, which lifted the target price for the legacy budget airline to %$66 from $50.
Downgrades:
- Cars.com Inc. (NYSE: CARS) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan, with a $10 target price.
- Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup, which has a $132 target price for the stock.
- Duolingo Inc. (NASDAQ: DUOL) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley, which slashed the price target for the shares to $100 from $245.
- Synopsis Inc. (NASDAQ: SNPS) was cut to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley, which cut the target price to $480 from $550.
- Warner Bros Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ: WBD) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Arete, with a $31.25 target price.
Initiations:
- Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) was reinstated with a Buy rating at Bank of America with a $1,185 target price.
- Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ: JAZZ) was initiated with an Overweight rating at Barclays with a $224 target price.
- Neurogene Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: NGNE) was initiated with a Buy rating at Canaccord, with a $200 target price.
- Pelthos Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: PTHS) was initiated with an Overweight rating at Piper Sandler, which has a $48 target price for the stock.
- Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was reinstated in coverage at Bank of America with a Buy rating and a $150 target price objective.
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