Lyft, 3M upgraded: Wall Street’s top analyst calls

The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today’s research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.

Top 5 Upgrades:

• Loop Capital upgraded Lyft (LYFT) to Buy from Hold with an unchanged price target of $20. The analyst cites the positive update and new long-term targets provided at the company’s analyst event for the upgrade. BofA double upgraded Lyft to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $20, up from $15, after Lyft hosted its first-ever investor day and gave targets through 2027 that were above the Street consensus. Lyft was also upgraded at Gordon Haskett and Fox Advisors.
• BofA upgraded 3M (MMM) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $120, up from $105. The firm sees the new CEO refocusing the company on growth and operations and argues that the change in management “comes at an opportune time” after 3M spent the past several years focusing on litigation and exiting PFAS manufacturing as well as spinning out its Healthcare business.
• JMP Securities last night upgraded CarGurus (CARG) to Outperform from Market Perform with a $30 price target. After analyzing prevailing automotive trends across new, used, and wholesale, the firm believes the industry will be nearly normalized by 2026, with broader normalization by 2028.
• Argus upgraded HP Enterprise (HPE) to Buy from Hold with a $26 price target after its Q2 earnings beat and “positive guidance.” The firm is citing the company’s strong positioning and growing opportunity in the AI space as it is generating revenue from AI servers, and its overall compute business is now showing signs of recovery, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• UBS upgraded Two Harbors (TWO) to Buy from Neutral with a $14.50 price target. The analyst cites the combination of favorable risk dynamics and valuation for the upgrade.

Top 5 Downgrades:

• Piper Sandler last night downgraded Halozyme Therapeutics (HALO) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $51, up from $48. While the issuance of a new patent and the European Union Darzalex royalty stepping back up to its full rate through March 2029 was a “pleasant surprise,” the shares have run into the new price target, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• JPMorgan downgraded Vail Resorts (MTN) to Underweight from Neutral with a price target of $176, down from $217, following the fiscal Q3 report. The company reduced Q4 EBITDA guidance to reflect April and May Demand trends, the analyst says.
• Oppenheimer downgraded Seres Therapeutics (MCRB) to Perform from Outperform without a price target. Given the uncertainty around both the completion of the Vowst asset sale itself, and the value of the remaining assets pending the anticipated Q3 clinical read-out, Oppenheimer is stepping to the sidelines.
• Truist downgraded Exxon Mobil (XOM) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $124, down from $146. While the firm still believes Guyana is a world-calls asset and the Pioneer Natural (PXD) acquisition is a positive addition, it forecasts Exxon shares to potentially underperform peers in the nearer-term given the current valuation and a “bit of Pioneer digestion,” the analyst tells investors.
• William Blair downgraded Concrete Pumping (BBCP) to Market Perform from Outperform without a price target following the Q1 report. The analyst believes investors may be surprised to hear the company’s heavy commercial and manufacturing activity is being pressured by higher interest rates.

Top 5 Initiations:

• Wells Fargo initiated coverage of UPS (UPS) with an Overweight rating and $156 price target. Following a “rocky” 2023 and early 2024, “the bar is too low,” the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• Wells Fargo initiated coverage of FedEx (FDX) with an Equal Weight rating and $275 price target. The firm sees long-term value in the shares and expects the company’s transformation to improve margins, returns, and cash flows, but near-term risks are “abound” and consensus estimates are mis-modeling fiscal 2024 while the Express/Ground integration looms, the firm says.
• BTIG initiated coverage of Ally Financial (ALLY) with a Buy rating and $51 price target and also names the stock as the firm’s Top Pick as part of a broader research note launching coverage on Consumer Finance names. The firm’s positive bias on the shares is driven by the overly negative sentiment on Ally Financial as investors seek a pure-play way to express a negative view on auto broadly, BTIG says.
• Mizuho initiated coverage of Chemours (CC) with a Neutral rating and $25 price target. The analyst cites TiO2 overcapacity concerns and inconsistency around economic growth for the rating.
• Morgan Stanley initiated coverage of AerCap (AER) with an Equal Weight rating and $103 price target. The stock’s risk/reward looks balanced, the analyst tells investors in a research note.