The futures traded lower as investors returned to action after a big Thanksgiving holiday and weekend. The major indexes closed mixed on the shortened trading day on Friday, with both the Dow Jones industrials and the Russell 2000 posting gains. With a huge Black Friday behind us and Cyber Monday underway, many across Wall Street are concerned that, with the Michigan Consumer Sentiment index printing a lower number last week than during the pandemic, the holiday shopping numbers could plunge.
So far the numbers do not bear that out, but shoppers are indeed bargain hunting, and many are utilizing the “buy now, pay later” services. In addition, U.S. employers are slowing seasonal hiring as retailers forecast weaker sales growth.
Yields were modestly lower across the Treasury curve Friday, with only the benchmark 30-year-long bond yield ticking higher. The spread of the inversion between the 90-day Treasury bill and the 10-year note has exploded out to 72 basis points. A negative 10-year and 3-month spread historically has been viewed as a precursor or predictor of a recessionary period. The New York Fed uses the rate in a model to predict recessions that are two to six quarters ahead.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude ended a brutal week both trading down on Friday 2.00% and 1.78%, respectively. Bearish sentiment is creeping into the energy complex as published media reports indicated Friday that China’s daily coronavirus cases reached a record high as lockdowns continue, halting a lot of activity in Beijing. Gold and Bitcoin ended Friday lower as well.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each day of the week 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, November 28, 2022.
Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI): Truist Financial upgraded the shares to Buy from Hold and has an $81 target price. The consensus target is $92.58. The stock closed Friday at $73.47, which was down 4% for the day.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN): Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy rating as the Christmas shopping season has started to heat up. The analysts have a $165 target price, which compares with the $141.24 consensus target and Friday’s closing print of $93.41.
Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ARCO): Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating and a $10 target on shares of the company, which has the exclusive right to own, operate and grant franchises of McDonald’s restaurants in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean. The consensus target is $10.15. Friday’s close was at $7.25.
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