The futures traded higher, and what a difference a day makes. After opening the week with solid gains Monday, the stock market was pounded on Tuesday and all the major indexes closed lower after a shocking (to some) downgrade of small and medium-sized banks by rating agency Moody’s. In another stunning move, numerous large-cap industry giants like Bank of New York Mellon, U.S. Bancorp and State Street were all put on negative review status by Moody’s and could be downgraded in the future.
Once again the fear of contagion in the banking system has been reignited, and with the potential for more economic worries if inflation comes in hotter than expected tomorrow, we could be in for some rough sailing.
Treasury yields were down across the curve as the lure of safe-haven government debt had buyers showing up right from the open. The biggest buying was in the longer maturities, as the 10-year note closed at 4.02% and the 30-year long bond at 4.21%, with both yields dropping by five basis points. The two-year paper closed unchanged at 4.76%, as the inversion widened some Tuesday.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude bucked the selling trend like Treasuries, as both closed higher after industry reports indicated that crude inventories will sink to an eight-year low by the end of this year. Continued demand plus the falling inventories have analysts feeling that the $80 level could prove to be strong support. Brent closed the day at $86 a barrel, while WTI finished the session at $82.67. Natural gas also closed higher at $2.78, up 2% on the day.
Gold was also a loser Tuesday, despite Russia announcing it was restarting its gold and currency purchasing again to the tune of $19 million per day. In addition, China continues to buy the bullion in its efforts to challenge the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency. The December contract closed at $1,958.90, down 0.56%. Bitcoin was a big winner on the day, closing up 2.65% at $29,954.30.
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 Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Wednesday, August 9, 2023.
Alteryx Inc. (NYSE: AYX): Loop Capital’s downgrade to Hold from Buy included a target price cut to $35 from $60. The consensus target is $67.51 for now. The stock closed down 18% on Tuesday at $30.87 after report of a second-quarter loss.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN): Zacks has selected this as its Bull of the Day stock, making a case that it is a strong buy once more. Shares last closed at $139.94, and the $152.15 consensus price target would be a 52-week high.
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