Wall Street analysts have made significant calls across the market, with notable upgrades for Nvidia, Walmart, and Crocs. Key firms like Deutsche Bank, Baird, and Bank of America issued positive ratings on various stocks, citing growth potential, market positioning, and attractive valuations.
Other prominent calls include Piper Sandler initiating coverage on HawkEye360, Guggenheim on Thermo Fisher, and Morgan Stanley on Quantinuum, underscoring confidence in the technology and healthcare sectors.
New York, NY - Wall Street analysts were active on Thursday, issuing a flurry of upgrades and downgrades across various sectors. Key calls included positive sentiment towards tech giants and promising retail and healthcare companies, while some firms advised caution on specific stocks.
- Deutsche Bank upgraded Walmart (WMT) to 'Buy' from 'Hold', citing a more favorable setup into 2027 and seeing "more ways to win."
- Baird upgraded Bank of America (BAC) to 'Outperform' from 'Neutral', recommending a buy-the-dip strategy following earnings, and also upgraded Zions Bancorporation (ZION) to 'Outperform' from 'Neutral', advising to "buy the weakness."
- Piper Sandler initiated coverage of HawkEye360 with an 'Overweight' rating, highlighting its "powerful intelligence tool" in commercial space-based SIGINT.
- Guggenheim initiated coverage of Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) with a 'Buy' rating and a $740 price target, deeming its shares "compelling."
- Bank of America upgraded BorgWarner (BWA) to 'Buy' from 'Neutral', anticipating improving growth in its core auto business by 2027-2028.
- Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of AngloGold Ashanti (AGA) with a 'Buy' rating, noting its long-term optionality, operational consistency, and high prospective shareholder returns.
- Morgan Stanley upgraded Quantinuum to 'Overweight' from 'Equal Weight', identifying it as their top quantum computing play with significant upside potential.
- Mizuho upgraded Array Technologies (ARRY) to 'Outperform' from 'Neutral', believing demand fears are overdone, and set a price target of $5.
- StoneX initiated coverage of Warner Music (WMG) with a 'Buy' rating, suggesting ample upside due to favorable streaming economics and a new Spotify agreement. They also initiated coverage of ON Semiconductor (ON) with a 'Buy' rating, citing "new growth appeal." Additionally, StoneX downgraded Spotify (SPOT) to 'Hold' from 'Buy', citing difficult near-term financial optics despite long-term network effects.
- UBS upgraded Regeneron (REGN) to 'Buy' from 'Neutral', praising its R&D engine and blockbuster drugs like Dupixent. UBS also upgraded Scotts Miracle-Gro (SMG) to 'Buy' from 'Neutral', viewing the stock as too compelling to ignore, with a $70 price target.
- Jefferies initiated coverage of Black Hills (BKH) with a 'Buy' rating, pointing to positive catalysts like its data center opportunity.
- Stifel initiated coverage of Establishment Labs with a 'Buy' rating, projecting a "positive outlook" based on strong growth and market health.
- Citi upgraded Cemex (CX) to 'Buy' from 'Neutral', driven by a "promising Mexico outlook" following a significant de-rating.
- Bank of America upgraded CarMax (KMX) to 'Buy' from 'Underperform', asserting that its turnaround is "gaining traction" and raising its price objective.
- RBC upgraded Casey's General Stores (CASY) to 'Outperform' from 'Sector Perform', highlighting its differentiated offering and advantaged positioning, with an $825 price target.
- JPMorgan upgraded ArcelorMittal (MT) to 'Overweight' from 'Equal Weight', seeing an earnings inflection. JPMorgan also initiated coverage of Hemab Therapeutics with an 'Overweight' rating and a $70 price target.
- Barclays upgraded Crocs (CROX) to 'Overweight' from 'Equal Weight', citing improving product innovation and DTC strength.
- KeyBanc reiterated its 'Overweight' rating on Nvidia (NVDA), maintaining it as a best idea due to its unique position in AI/ML data center growth and strong competitive moat.
- Deutsche Bank upgraded Fortrea (FTRE) to 'Buy' from 'Hold', believing the company is at an inflection point for margin expansion and benefiting from market tailwinds. Deutsche Bank also reiterated its 'Buy' rating on CoreWeave (CRWV), advising to "buy the dip" amidst its differentiated positioning in a supply-constrained market.
