The futures traded lower after we started the holiday-shortened trading week with all the major indexes closing lower on the day. Softer economic data out of China and a growing sense that stocks are very overbought after finishing August strong were among the reasons the risk-off crowd held serve. After a very busy round of economic data last week, things will quiet down some, with all eyes now focused on next week when the consumer price index (CPI) reading for August will drop. Many feel it could come in above estimates, as energy prices have stayed strong since the rally that started in June.
The sellers returned to the Treasury complex on Tuesday, as yields were higher across the board. Nervousness over the impending CPI reading, the potential for a strike against the big three automakers, and Friday’s higher than expected jobs data and increase in the unemployment rate to 3.8% all factored into the selling. The 10-year note closed at 4.27%, while the two-year paper finished at 4.96%. The ongoing inversion still signals recession is possible.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude both soared higher Tuesday after the Saudis extended the million-barrel-per-day production cut through the end of this year. After big inventory draws the past couple of weeks, and the extension of production cuts, short-sellers may have been caught trying to take advantage of price spikes and got burned. Brent closed up 1.03% at $90.03, while WTI finished trading on Tuesday at $86.71, up 1.36%. Natural gas closed lower at $2.59, down almost 7% for the day.
Gold finished the day lower on dollar strength and some profit-taking, as the bullion saw a nice bounce off of the mid-August lows. The precious metal also traded higher last week following the tepid nonfarm payroll report for August. The December contract closed the session at $1,951.80, down 0.78%. Bitcoin continued its decline, closing lower by 0.53% to finish at $25,680.30.
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 analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen on Wednesday, September 6, 2023.
American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP): RBC Capital Markets upgraded the stock to Outperform from Sector Perform and bumped its $197 target price to $200. The consensus target is $181.31, and Tuesday’s last trade came in at $160.00.
Automatic Data Inc. (NASDAQ: ADP): RBC Capital Markets started coverage with a Sector Perform rating and a $267 target price. The consensus target is $259.41. Tuesday’s closing share price was $252.85.
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