The futures were lower on Friday, after a dreadful risk-off Thursday when all the major indexes were hammered. The Nasdaq led the losers, closing down 3.23% to the lowest finish for all three since November 9. Rate hike worries were cited after the Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate another 50 basis points on Wednesday.
While most across Wall Street expect at least two more 25-basis-point moves, in February and March, the real concern is the terminal rate will be above 5% as the Fed suggested this week, which could mean a third hike in May of 2023. In addition, Goldman Sachs warned last week that there likely will be no Fed pivot to lower rates until 2024.
Yields were down across the Treasury curve, as worried investors piled into the safe-haven government debt. The yields on the 10-year note closed at levels not seen in over three months, down six basis points at 3.45%. The two-year note closed at 4.24%, which was flat on the day, while keeping the inversion in place and at the widest levels in 40 years.
After a strong week, both Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude closed lower on Thursday, each down well over 1%. Natural gas was the big energy winner, closing at $6.91 up over 7%. Gold and Bitcoin both followed the equity sell-off and closed lower.
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 Friday, December 16, 2022.
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T): Morgan Stanley downgraded the legacy telecom giant to Equal Weight from Overweight and has a $20 target price. The consensus target is $20.28. The stock closed on Thursday at $18.47.
Avery Dennison Corp. (NYSE: AVY): BofA Securities lifted its Neutral rating to Buy, and its $200 price target increased to $205. The consensus target is $199.82. Thursday’s close was at $181.32.
Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX): Deutsche Bank downgraded the shares to Hold from Buy and cut its $69 target price to $51. The consensus target is $63.20. The stock closed on Thursday at $52.63.
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