Wednesday\u2019s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: AMC Entertainment, Apple, Bausch + Lomb, Costco, Lululemon Athletica, Under Armour, Walmart, and More

The futures are trading higher after a very weak trading session yesterday where all of the major indices and the transports closed lower. Some big blue-chip earnings warnings combined with the worst consumer confidence reading in well over a year combined to set a very grim tone for the day. More economic data are due this week. These reports include the Federal Reserve meeting decision where it is still expected the members will lift the fed funds rate 75 basis-points. We could be in for some elevated volatility as the bear market rally looks to be fading.

The only buying on Tuesday was once again focused in the Treasury market where yields were lower across the curve and the two-year and 10-year note inversion remained in place. The 10-year note, which closed at a 2.79% yield, has dropped a stunning 69 basis points since the middle of June. The two-year note closed Tuesday at a 3.06% yield. The inversion is the largest in 16 years and suggests we may already be in a recession.

Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate oil closed modestly lower on Tuesday while natural gas continued its explosive move higher closing up 3% just below the $9 level. Gold also closed slightly lower, while Bitcoin also ended the day down more than 2%.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week with a goal of finding new 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 across Wall Street on Wednesday July 27, 2022.

AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AMC) Goldman Sachs lowered their price target on the “meme stock” favorite to $34 from $39 while keeping a Neutral rating on the shares. The consensus target across Wall Street is set at a stunning $9.09. The last trade Tuesday hit the tape at $14.03 down close to 6%.

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO) BofA Securities downgraded the stock to Underperfrom from Neutral with an $8 target price. The consensus across Wall Street is $16 for now. The stock closed down almost 9% Tuesday, a victim perhaps of the retail stock malaise.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Itau BBA initiated coverage on the technology giant with an Underperfrom rating and a $136 target price. The consensus is set at $183.29. The shares were last seen Tuesday at $151.60.

Autohome, Inc. (NYSE: ATHM) CLSA upgraded the stock to Outperform from Underperform and raised their price target on the shares to $42.50 from $29.50. The consensus target is $35.20. The last trade on Tuesday was reported at $36.55.

Bausch + Lomb Corp. (NYSE: BLCO) RBC Capital Markets started coverage with an Outperform rating and a $22 target price. The consensus target was not available. The stock was last seen Tuesday at $15.35 down almost 5%, but rebounded smartly in the aftermarket up close to 4%.

Chewy, Inc. (NYSE: CHWY) Wedbush downgraded the online pet products stock to Neutral from Outperform with a $44 target price. The consensus is $44.36. The shares closed Tuesday at $38.40 down over 8% after some bad news for retailers hit the tape yesterday.

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $580 target price. The consensus for the popular shopping destination is set at $553.92. The stock closed Tuesday at $511.93.

HomeTrust Bank, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTBI) Compass Point downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy with a $25 target price objective. The consensus is posted at $30.85. The stock closed Tuesday at $23.99 down over 5% after announcing a merger with Quantum Capital.

The Howard Hughes Corp. (NYSE: HHC) BMO Capital Markets started coverage on the company with an Outperform rating to go along with a $90 target price. The consensus target price is $113.33. The shares were last seen Tuesday at $69.81.

HubSpot, Inc. (NYSE: HUBS) Oppenheimer resumed coverage on the stock with an Outperform rating and a $350 target price. The consensus target is much higher at $446.54. The final trade for Tuesday was reported at $272.26 down over 6%.

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) Goldman Sachs lowered the price target on the robotic surgery heavyweight to $273 from $319 while keeping a Buy rating on the company. The consensus target on Wall Street is $280, and the last Tuesday trade was reported at $216.79.

Lululemon Athletica, Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) Piper Sandler resumed coverage of the yoga and exercise apparel giant with a Neutral rating and a $310 target price. That is versus the $382.18 consensus target and Tuesday’s final trade of $283.41 down almost 6%, another victim of the selling on retail stocks.

Meta Platform, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) Itau BBA started coverage of the social media giant with a Market Perform rating and a $188 target price. That compares with a much higher consensus target of $276.72 and Tuesday’s closing print of $159.15, down close to 5%.

MicroStrategy Inc. (NASDAQ: MSTR) Jefferies downgraded the shares to Underperfrom from Hold and has a $180 target price. The consensus is set at an astonishing $527.67 for now. The stock closed down almost 11% at $237.64 Tuesday on no news we could find.

Revolve Group, Inc. (NYSE: RVLV) BofA Securities downgraded the stock to Underperform from Buy and have a $22 target price for the shares. The consensus is posted at $50.50 for now. The stock closed down over 7% at $25.47 on no news we could source.

Shopify, Inc. (NASDAQ: SHOP) Oppenheimer resumed coverage with an Outperform rating while trimming the price target on the shares to $45 from $50. The consensus is set higher at $81.23. The stock closed Tuesday at $31.55 down over 14% after the company said it was cutting 10% of its workforce.

Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UAA) Piper Sandler resumed coverage with a Neutral rating and a $10 target. The consensus is set at $14.93. The stock closed Tuesday at $8.25 down almost 6%.

Vista Outdoor, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSTO) Roth Capital downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy and cut the target price to $32 from $53. The consensus target is $53.57. The stock closed Tuesday at $28.81 down almost 3%.

Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) Jefferies maintained a Buy rating on the stock and a $150 target price, versus the $154.04 consensus, after the company pre announced some serious earnings issues and was hammered on Tuesday closing down 7.6% at $121.98 but well off the lows for the day.

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) Goldman Sachs lowered the price target on the Buy rated entertainment giant to $130 from $148. The consensus across Wall Street for the stock was not available. The final trade on Tuesday was reported at $99.78.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NYSE: WBD) Goldman Sachs resumed coverage with a Buy rating and a $20 target price. The consensus is set at a much higher $30.65. The shares closed trading Tuesday at $14.43.

Weber Inc. (NASDAQ: WEBR) Wells Fargo downgraded the popular grill maker to Underweight from Equal Weight and has a $4 target price The consensus is set at $8. The shares were hammered Tuesday closing down almost 5% after the CEO left the company and sales have slumped.

Here are Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades.
https://247wallst.com/investing/2022/07/26/tuesdays-top-analyst-upgrades-and-downgrades-allbirds-antero-resources-autonation-blackstone-chesapeake-energy-chipotle-mexican-grill-eqt-corporation-lam-research-regions-financial/
They included Allbirds, Antero Resources, AutoNation, Blackstone, Chesapeake Energy, Chipotle Mexican Grill, EQT Corporation, Lam Research, Regions Financial and more.

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