Monday’s Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades: Analog Devices, Baxter, Best Buy, Coinbase, Johnson Controls, Lam Research, Micron Technology, Qualcomm and More

The futures traded higher after another down week for the broader markets. All the major indexes closed lower on Friday, although the S&P 500 broke its five-day losing streak on Friday. After a decent recovery in November and a very weak start to December, a historically strong month, broad markets are searching for a direction, but many economists and analysts are suggesting a recession is on the way in 2023.

Treasury yields were higher after a week of buying that had driven some maturities to yields not printed since early September. Once again, the shorter maturities saw the biggest selling, with the yield on the two-year note jumping back to the 4.33% level. That keeps the inversion with the 10-year note, which closed at 3.567%, at its widest in 40 years. Bond traders see the ongoing inversion as a harbinger of a recession.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude closed mixed on Friday, after a tough week that saw Brent give up all its 2022 gains at one point. WTI traded near its lowest level in a year. Despite the drop, top energy analysts feel that downside from current trading levels seems limited when overall industry fundamentals remain supportive and no major bearish catalysts appear to be on the horizon. Gold closed relatively flat on the day, while Bitcoin slumped back under the $17,000 level.

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, December 12, 2022.

Accenture PLC (NYSE: ACN): Piper Sandler downgraded the stock to Underweight from Neutral with a $268 price target. The consensus target is up at $314.72. The final trade on Friday was posted at $288.41.

Allogene Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLO): The BofA Securities downgrade to Underperform from Buy included a price target cut to $9 from $24. The consensus target is $25.00. The stock closed on Friday at $8.76.

Ambarella Inc. (NASDAQ: AMBA): Susquehanna started coverage with a Positive rating and a $90 price target. The consensus target is $93.27. Friday’s final trade came in at $78.07.

Analog Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: ADI): Susquehanna initiated coverage with a positive rating and a $205 price target. The consensus target is $191.40. The shares were last seen on Friday trading at $168.68.

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX): Citigroup downgraded the shares to Neutral from Buy and cut its $64 price target to $58. The consensus target is $63.70. Friday’s closing share price was $52.38.

Becton Dickinson and Co. (NYSE: BDX): Citigroup’s upgrade to Neutral from Sell came with a price target hike to $250 from $221. The consensus target is $264.46. The stock closed on Friday at $247.60.

Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY): Goldman Sachs lifted its Sell rating to Neutral and raised its $59 price target to $83. The consensus target is $82.67. The last trade on Friday was recorded at $81.81.

Box Inc. (NYSE: BOX): J.P. Morgan upgraded the stock to Overweight from Neutral. It also raised its $31 price target to $34, above the consensus target of $33.22. The stock closed on Friday at $28.11.

Brinker International Inc. (NYSE: EAT): Goldman Sachs cut its Neutral rating to Sell and lowered its $31 price target to $28. The consensus target is just $33.59. The stock closed on Friday at $35.25.

Cheesecake Factory Inc. (NASDAQ: CAKE): The prior Neutral rating at Goldman Sachs is now Sell. The analyst also cut the $35 price target to $29, below the consensus target of $34.75. Friday’s $33.03 close was up almost 1% on the day.