Intel upgraded, Texas Instruments initiated: 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:

• Wolfe Research upgraded Intel (INTC) to Peer Perform from Underperform with no price target. With sentiment and expectations lower, and the stock now down 38% year-to-date, the firm says its cautious thesis played out.
• Argus upgraded Wayfair (W) to Buy from Hold with an $83 price target. Home furnishing sales began the year weak, but growth in orders and active users who have purchased at least once over the past year should act as a catalyst for revenue, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• Vertical Research upgraded 3M (MMM) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $140, up from $92. The firm still sees “many uncertainties in the 3M outlook,” but believes the risk/reward “now tilts clearly to the upside.”
• Raymond James upgraded GoodRx (GDRX) to Outperform from Market Perform with a $10 price target. The firm says that while it has been “skeptical” of the GoodRx story over the last two years, new management has brought a renewed focus to the business that prioritizes creating a symbiotic relationship with its retail network which has “stabilized far better than we previously anticipated.”
• BofA upgraded Trupanion (TRUP) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $49, up from $35. Insurance is a cyclical industry, and the firm believes that a period of under-earning will quickly transition to over-earning over the next 18 months.

Top 5 Downgrades:

• Benchmark downgraded Cirrus Logic (CRUS) to Hold from Buy and removed the firm’s price target on the shares. Although the firm says it appreciates the new content growth at Apple (AAPL) and remains “upbeat” on the migration to laptops, it believes the current share price is reflecting these incremental bill of material gains following the company’s latest “beat and raise” earnings report.
• Argus downgraded Valero (VLO) to Hold from Buy. The company’s lower first-quarter earnings reflected a weaker performance within the Refining business, which saw a 12% decline in year-over-year revenues, lower refining margins falling 40% and weaker operating income that came down 57%, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• Lake Street downgraded Inotiv (NOTV) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $2, down from $10. The company’s Q2 revenue of $119M was below consensus and the company withdrew revenue and AEBITDA guidance given its NHP challenges, notes the firm, which points out that the company disclosed in its 10-Q that if results do not improve a going concern warning would be in order.
• Truist downgraded Occidental Petroleum (OXY) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $69, down from $84. The firm firm forecasts minimal shareholder return in the coming quarters as Occidental uses the majority of free cash flow, along with proceeds from $4.5B-$6.0B divestiture program, to reduce debt to under $15B.
• Truist downgraded EOG Resources (EOG) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $136, down from $163. EOG continues to suggest its intention of sticking with exploration over acquisitions likely resulting in minimal near-term core additions, the firm says, adding that it believes EOG should now trade closer in line with peers.

Top 5 Initiations:

• Wells Fargo initiated coverage of Texas Instruments (TXN) with an Underweight rating and $150 price target. The sell-equivalent rating reflects a concern that Texas Instruments can’t achieve its revenue targets and related utilization, the firm tells investors in a research note.
• BofA initiated coverage of SharkNinja (SN) with a Buy rating and $90 price target, calling the company a “disruptive innovator” that it sees being poised to win more market share.
• Barclays reinstated coverage of Truist Financial (TFC) with an Equal Weight rating and $43 price target. The bank’s insurance sale and securities repositioning increase net interest income, improve capital, allow for the resumption of share buyback and enhance balance sheet flexibility, but the moves also reduce Truist’s diversification, fee income, profitability and valuation “and call into question risk management,” the firm says.
• Piper Sandler initiated coverage of Quaker Houghton (KWR) with an Overweight rating and $220 price target. While the company’s near-term growth is dampened by the macro environment, it “has multiple levers to enhance upside,” the firm tells investors in a research note.
• H.C. Wainwright initiated coverage of Dianthus Therapeutics (DNTH) with a Buy rating and $40 price target. The firm says Dianthus’ lead candidate DNTH103 is a highly potent, human IgG4 monoclonal antibody that specifically targets the active form of C1s, an upstream protein that regulates the classical complement pathway.