The futures were lower after a brutal risk-off day across Wall Street that saw all the major indexes close lower. The Nasdaq took the biggest hit, closing down 1.06% at 13,872.47, while the S&P 500 finished the session down 0.70% at 4,465.48. Strategists pointed to inflation concerns with oil trading higher and the dollar’s ongoing strength, which can hurt international sales for top American companies. Some pointed to seasonality as an issue, as September is the worst month for stocks historically.
Treasury yields were mixed across the curve after a big day of selling on Tuesday. Yields from the six-month T-bill to the 10-year note all traded higher Wednesday. Once again, inflation worries, the strong ISM Services data and concerns over the ongoing “higher for longer” mantra from the Federal Reserve weighed on the government debt. Some also voiced concern over a huge wave of corporate debt coming to the market soon. The 10-year note closed at 4.30%, while the two-year paper finished the day at 5.03%.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both jumped to 10-month highs as the strong rally that has been fueled in part by production cuts by OPEC, the Saudis and Russia continued to follow through Wednesday. Brent finished the day at $90.82, up 0.87%, while WTI closed up 1.20% at $87.73. There is a strong possibility that August inflation numbers get pushed higher than expectations on the higher energy pricing. Natural gas closed the day down 2.29% at $2.52.
Gold pricing slipped again Wednesday. The December contract finished the day down 0.54% at $1942.10. Once again, the main culprits behind the selling are the continuing strength of the U.S. dollar and the rise in interest rates. Bitcoin continued its ongoing troubles, closing down again on Wednesday by 0.40% to finish the session at $25,679.60.
24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports each weekday 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 Thursday, September 7, 2023.
American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL): Exane BNP Paribas upgraded the stock from Neutral to Outperform with a $20 target. The consensus target is $17.74, and the closing share price on Wednesday was $14.33.
Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN): HSBC Securities started coverage with a Buy rating and a $320 target. The consensus target is $255.15. Wednesday’s close was at $249.01.
Block Inc. (NYSE: SQ): UBS cut its Buy rating to Neutral and its $102 target price to $65. The consensus target is $84.91. The stock closed on Wednesday at $57.63.
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