Markets were somewhat mixed on Thursday, with the Nasdaq up about 50 basis points, while the Dow Jones industrials and S&P 500 each had a slight loss. This comes after Wednesday\u2019s session that saw sizable losses across the board in the wake of April\u2019s inflation data.<\/p>\n
April\u2019s inflation print from the consumer price index (CPI) came in at 8.3%, just above the 8.1% consensus estimate. While this is still at an elevated level and near historic highs, it is a marginal pullback from March\u2019s CPI, which could be signaling a slowing of inflation.<\/p>\n
Even though inflation may be slowing, the Federal Reserve is targeting some interest rate hikes in the near future to further counter rising prices. The rate hike earlier this month was for a total of 50 basis points, which is the largest move by the Fed in over two decades. While the upcoming Fed meetings in June and July are expected to see similar increases, rumors suggest that a 75 basis point hike is on the table as well.<\/p>\n
The S&P 500 has dropped by roughly 17% so far this year, but if inflation moderates and the rate hikes are reasonable, the second half of the year could shape up well for the market. It is worth noting that the start to this year is one of the worst on record since the Great Depression, but a significant number of years that have seen such bad starts eventually ended up in the black.<\/p>\n
24\/7 Wall St. is reviewing additional analyst calls seen on Thursday. We have included the latest call on each stock, as well as a recent trading history and the consensus targets among analysts. Note that analyst calls seen earlier in the day were on Boeing, Coinbase, Corning, Peloton, Walmart and more.<\/p>\n
Air Products and Chemicals Inc. (NYSE: APD): Wells Fargo downgraded the stock to an Equal Weight from Overweight and cut the $275price target to $255. The 52-week trading range is $216.24 to $316.39, and shares traded near $234 apiece on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Alpha Metallurgical Resources Inc. (NYSE: AMR): It may sound antiquated, but the coal business is firing on all cylinders, says Zacks about its Bull of the Day stock. Shares were trading around $151 on Thursday. The $181.00 consensus price target would be a 52-week high.<\/p>\n
American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP): Wolfe Research downgraded the shares from Outperform to Peer Perform with a $146 price target. The stock traded near $155 on Thursday. The 52-week trading range is $149.89 to $199.55.<\/p>\n