Early Look

Monday, October 12, 2026

U.S. futures are mixed on light volume ahead of the Columbus Day holiday, where bond markets and banks are closed, thought the U.S. stock market is open regular hours today. A quiet day is expected, but a busy week likely in store with the start of earnings season with Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo scheduled to report results during the week in the financial sector. Also, investors will get monthly consumer (CPI) and producer price (PPI) inflation data mid-week. As for last week, the S&P 500 gained 1.15%, the Nasdaq climbed 0.64%, and the Dow climbed 0.93% (biggest weekly gain since week ended August 7). The Nasdaq marks fourth weekly gain in a row for first time since its 6-week streak that ended on May 8. In Asian markets, The Nikkei Index slipped -11 points to 69,030, the Shanghai Index fell -16 points to 3,797, the Kospi dropped -3.8% or 39 points to 1,004, and the Hang Seng Index rose 59 points to 24,271. In Europe, the German DAX is up 120 points to 25,206, while the FTSE 100 is up 50 points to 10,602. Oil prices edge higher after a missile attack on Saudi Arabia’s international airport killed at least 12 people and injured hundreds more on Saturday, in strikes carried out by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants to which the kingdom’s military vowed a response.

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 423.31 points, or 0.83%, to 51,654.95
• The Nasdaq Composite jumped 172.83 points, or 0.64%, to 27,366.17
• The Russell 2000 Index advanced 12.85 points, or 0.46% to 2,806.98

• Earnings After the Close: None

• India's retail inflation jumped to 5.54% in September, nearing the upper end of the central bank's 2%-6% tolerance band and strengthening the case for further rate hikes as the Iran war. The September print was marginally higher than economists' 5.4% forecast.

• Volkswagen (VWAGY) said deliveries fell in the third quarter as the German automaker continued to suffer from a deteriorating market in China.
• Chinese Ev stocks (NIO, LI, XPEV) looking lower after Bloomberg reported the European Union will instill a 350,000-car limit per year for imports of Chinese hybrid vehicles, with the measure taking effect as soon as December 1

• First Solar (FSLR) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist and raised tgt to $270 from $229 as the firm sees a stronger backdrop for the company's pricing into the 2030s. In addition, the recent valuation reset provides an attractive entry point.
• Global steel demand is expected to shrink slightly this year, with the World Steel Association on Monday cutting its forecast as weaker demand in China and disruption from the US-Israeli war with Iran weigh on consumption. The industry body now expects global steel demand to fall 0.1% in 2026, compared with a forecast in April for growth of 0.3%.

• Artisan Partners (APAM) reported that its preliminary assets under management as of September 30 totaled $168.7B. Artisan Funds and Artisan Global Funds accounted for $90.2B of total firm AUM, while separate accounts and other AUM accounted for $78.5B.
• Brown & Brown (BRO) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at KBW Inc. in insurance brokers, since easier prior-period comparables should support improving organic growth even as small-account and middle market P&C pricing slowly decelerates. Also, KBW downgrades BWIN to Market Perform with the stock near its recently announced pending take-private acquisition price.
• Pershing Square (PS) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup as the stock has traded through its target price. Meanwhile, EPS estimates have trended sideways since the company's IPO to modest portfolio returns.

• Merck (MRK) said its experimental eye drug remigromig improved vision in patients with a diabetes-related eye disease, meeting the main goal of a late-stage clinical trial. However, patients receiving the treatment experienced higher rates of a potentially serious eye complication than those taking an established medication.
• Mirum Pharmaceuticals (MIRM) said it will release topline results from a late-stage clinical trial of its Livmarli treatment on Monday, October 12, providing investors with a potential catalyst as the company seeks to expand the drug's use in rare liver diseases.

• Cable One (CABO) provides update on the pending purchase of Mega Broadband; U.S. court issues TRO prohibiting Cable One from acquiring 55% of MBI on October 9^th; CABO makes substantial progress toward financing transactions with GTCR and lenders; transactions expected to extend and reduce revolving credit facility, pay down b-4 term loan.
• Cirrus Logic (CRUS) has offered to acquire Synaptics (SYNA) in September, as the semiconductor company looked to fend off a competing bid from ON Semiconductor Corporation (ON), Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The report came after onsemi agreed to acquire Synaptics for $123 per share in an all-cash deal worth roughly $5.7B last week, revising its previous all-stock bid worth about $7B disclosed in June.
• IREN (IREN) shares rose after The Information reported that the crypto miner-turned-AI server provider had entered into a multiyear cloud deal with Anthropic. The Information analyzed the economics of Anthropic’s data center leases, detailing how the AI company is pushing its cloud partners to accelerate the construction of new data centers.
• Salesforce (CRM) was upgraded to Buy from Underperform at Banc America and raised the tgt to $285 from $160 saying prior concern was centered on AI-driven disintermediation, but conversations with CIOs and other market participants suggest that large enterprises are unlikely to replace platforms that house their business logic, data, workflows and compliance frameworks.
• Private equity firm GTCR and activist investor Elliott Investment Management are in advanced talks to acquire software provider CCC Intelligent Solutions (CCC), Bloomberg reported late Friday, and a deal could potentially be announced as soon as this week https://tinyurl.com/3bhukz7k

Mid-Morning Look

Monday, October 12, 2026

U.S. stocks open mixed, in line with the mixed overnight futures setup, as the Dow industrials outperform, while the S&P 500 is essentially flat and the Nasdaq and Russell 2000 slip modestly, with Technology (XLK) sitting at the bottom of the S&P sector table down over -1.1% on semi weakness (SOX). To no surprise given the Columbus Day holiday with bond markets and banks closed, U.S. stock markets aren't doing much this morning, especially with key bank earnings (JPM, C, GS, WFC, others) out later this week as well as key inflation data mid-week (CPI, PPI). Oil prices are higher as the energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine that President Trump announced over the weekend already looks fragile, while Iran-backed Houthi militants carried out a deadly attack at a Saudi airport. Oil prices rose to near two-week highs following the attacks. In AI space this week, Anthropic is hosting an investor day in California this Wednesday, while AMSL reports Wednesday morning and TSM on Thursday morning. So far, tech the main drag while nine of eleven S&P sectors are higher, led by Energy (XLE) again +1.4% (extends YTD gains to 47.5%) and Healthcare (XLV) and Financials (XLF) rising. The US dollar hovers around 18 month highs, while gold prices edge lower and bonds markets are closed.

• Memory & AI hardware sector: broad unwind across chip-adjacent names as Micron falls 4.2% after reports that China's CXMT is advancing a new memory chip architecture, dragging down NVDA, NBIS, AAOI, ALAB, COHR and others; weakness follows a 4.5% drop in SK Hynix and Samsung in Korea and a 4% slide in the Kospi overnight.
• Software sector: mixed morning on dueling analyst calls as CRM jumps after Bank of America double-upgrades to Buy from Underperform with a $285 tgt (from $160), and MANH rises on an upgrade to Overweight at Morgan Stanley with a $250 tgt; offsetting that, ADBE falls after Wells Fargo double-downgrades to Underweight from Overweight with a $225 tgt, while HUBS and MNDY were both downgraded at Barclays to Equal Weight citing slower core growth versus early-stage AI monetization.

• BMY +2%; said its experimental drug met the main goal of a late-stage trial in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a serious lung-scarring disease.
• CCC +9%; Private equity firm GTCR and activist investor Elliott Management are in advanced talks to acquire the software provider, Bloomberg reported late Friday, and a deal could potentially be announced as soon as this week https://tinyurl.com/3bhukz7k   
• CRM +4%; was upgraded to Buy at Banc America and raised the tgt to $285 from $160 saying prior concern was centered on AI-driven disintermediation, but conversations with CIOs and other market participants suggest that large enterprises are unlikely to replace platforms.
• FSLR +3%; was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist and raised tgt to $270 from $229 as the firm sees a stronger backdrop for the company's pricing into the 2030s. In addition, the recent valuation reset provides an attractive entry point.
• MANH +7%; was upgraded to Overweight at Morgan Stanley saying Cloud bookings have accelerated to 30%+, while 2H Cloud revenue guidance looks conservative, setting up estimate upside to consensus' 20% Cloud growth in FY27.
• TRAX +16%; after announcing positive top-line results for its drug, ANB033, in gluten-challenge study in celiac disease; ANB033 is Co's experimental antibody drug to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, including celiac disease.

• CMG -4%; after SBUX spokesperson tells CNBC that the company 'is not buying Chipotle. The commentary comes following days of speculation it was trying to acquire the fast-casual chain.
• CTNM -19%; after BMY’s admilparant meets the main goal of a late-stage trial in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at the 60 mg dose, but the 120 mg dose did not reach statistical significance. If approved, admilparant would become the first in a class of medicines called LPA1 inhibitors to treat IPF (Contineum is testing once-daily PIPE-791, which targets the same LPA1 pathway as twice-daily admilparant, in patients with IPF, a serious lung-scarring disease).
• IONQ -9%; to acquire Elisity to accelerate zero Trust for the Quantum Era in all-stock deal valued up to $1.3B. The deal value includes up to $150 million in earn-outs tied to Elisity's performance; share price for deal capped at $49.61, floor at $33.07 per share.
• MU -4%; after reports that CXMT is making progress on a new memory chip architecture designed to increase storage density, raising incremental competitive concerns around the memory landscape. https://tinyurl.com/ykr3hstw
• NIO -3%; along with weakness in XPEV, LI in Chinese EV sector, pressured after Bloomberg reported the European Union will instill a 350,000-car limit per year for imports of Chinese hybrid vehicles, with the measure taking effect as soon as December 1.

Closing Recap

Monday, October 12, 2026

Much ado about nothing summed up today’s stock market action as technology stocks (XLK) lagged all day behind a pullback in semiconductors (SOX -2.7%), though nine of the eleven S&P sectors finished higher, led by Energy (XLE +1.43%) and Communications (XLC +0.97%) as the S&P 500 finished flattish and in a tight trading range all day. Today was Columbus Day with banks and the bond market closed, while stocks markets felt like they were closed, awaiting key economic data and earnings this week. The consumer price index (CPI) on Wednesday morning is the big inflation data point as the Street is looking for headline inflation to re-accelerate to 3.6% and core to reach 2.5%. Beige Book follows Wednesday afternoon, with PPI on deck Thursday morning. Bank earnings kick off in size: JPM, GS, C, WFC, BAC, MS, BLK, SCHW and the rest of the financial complex should give the first real read on the economy, credit trends and market activity. Tomorrow we get JNJ and UNH in the healthcare sector and JPM, WFC, GS, Citi in banks.

• U.S. WTI crude oil futures settle at $93.74/bbl, up $1.89, or 2.06%, while Brent Crude futures settle at $106.65/bbl, up $1.93, or 1.84%. Oil rose as attacks on Saudi Arabia's airports outweighed prospects of increased supply from fresh Russian diesel exports and a Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said the Fed should move "relatively quickly" to a restrictive stance as inflation becomes more broad-based and impacts firms' pricing decisions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was increasingly clear Russia would not accept a US-proposed ceasefire on energy strikes after attacks on six Ukrainian energy facilities.

• Luxury Retail: LVMUY reported worse-than-expected Q3 organic sales growth as weak demand for its Fashion and Leather goods weighed. Organic sales, which strip out currency swings, rose 1% Y/y to €18.28B ($20.40B), compared with the 1.3% increase expected. The Fashion and Leather goods division posted a -5% fall in organic sales, against an expected -1.8% decline.
• Auto Sector: STLA unveiled six concept vehicles Sunday ahead of the Paris Motor Show, highlighting the automaker's efforts to revive its brands and attract budget-conscious buyers. VWAGY said deliveries fell in the third quarter as the German automaker continued to suffer from a deteriorating market in China. Chinese Ev stocks (NIO, LI, XPEV) were pressured after Bloomberg reported the European Union will instill a 350,000-car limit per year for imports of Chinese hybrid vehicles, with the measure taking effect as soon as December 1.

• Refining sector: shares of DINO, DK, PBF, PSX, MPC, VLO among refining names that have surged in 2026, and gained ~4% on average last week in what was an eventful period. Piper noted refiners saw an executive order signed to defer certain taxes on red dyed diesel, a deal struck with Russia to supply additional diesel onto the global/US market, and a Category 2 hurricane making landfall on the Gulf Coast but missing the key Gc refining complex. While Piper is not surprised to see more moves targeted towards lowering diesel prices ahead of mid- term elections, it does not expect a meaningful near or long term impact to the fundamental story as a result of these developments.

• Insurance sector: ALL was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Wells Fargo following recent underperformance noting the shares have significantly underperformed since the start of September in part due to the Muse rollout at the start of the month. BRO upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at KBW Inc. in insurance brokers, since easier prior-period comparables should support improving organic growth even as small-account and middle market P&C pricing slowly decelerates. Also, KBW downgrades BWIN to Market Perform with the stock near its recently announced pending take-private acquisition price.
• Lending sector: SLM was upgraded to Overweight at Morgan Stanley calling it an attractive entry point ahead of capital-light trajectory; nots with shares lower amid macro/credit concerns, sees an improving setup and a second capital-light partnership is the next key catalyst. ALLY was downgraded to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley saying higher rates drive a reset to 2027/28 expectations and flatter NIM & credit losses no longer improving mean the path to a mid-teens ROTCE takes longer. Mizuho downgrades FNMA and FMCC to Neutral from Outperform (FNMA PT to $5 from $10; FMCC PT to $4 from $9), based on a lower likelihood of a privatization by 2028.

• BIIB was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan ahead of an increasingly compelling catalyst path and an improved long-term growth outlook for the company.
• BMY said its experimental drug met the main goal of a late-stage trial in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a serious lung-scarring disease.
• CORT is seeking to exclude testimony from a retired federal appeals court judge supporting TEVA in an antitrust lawsuit, arguing her opinions could sway jurors without shedding Light on the facts of the case. In a filing on Friday in federal court in California, Corcept said consultant and retired judge Kathleen O’Malley of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit offered no technical expertise and that her presentation of legal opinions was inappropriate - Reuters
• CTNM shares fell after BMY’s admilparant meets the main goal of a late-stage trial in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis at the 60 mg dose, but the 120 mg dose did not reach statistical significance. If approved, admilparant would become the first in a class of medicines called LPA1 inhibitors to treat IPF (Contineum is testing once-daily PIPE-791, which targets the same LPA1 pathway as twice-daily admilparant, in patients with IPF, a serious lung-scarring disease).
• HRMY announces planned CEO transition to support next phase of growth; appoints Peter Anastasiou as President, CEO, and board member effective Jan 1, 2027, as Jeffrey M. Dayno to retire as CEO and step down from board at year-end 2026.
• MRK said its experimental eye drug remigromig improved vision in patients with a diabetes-related eye disease, meeting the main goal of a late-stage clinical trial. However, patients receiving the treatment experienced higher rates of a potentially serious eye complication than those taking an established medication.
• RGNX sets Oct. 20 Investor Event on Sura-vec ahead of Q4 2026 Pivotal Wet AMD Data; Event will review the sura-vec (ABBV-RGX-314) clinical program, including the ATMOSPHERE and ASCENT pivotal trials.
• STE expands Healthcare consumables offering with definitive agreement to acquire Xodus Medical, a Specialty Surgical products business focused on patient and or staff safety for $2.10B at closing; expects net purchase price of $1.80B after $300M cash tax benefits.
• TRAX announces positive top-line results for its drug, ANB033, in gluten-challenge study in celiac disease; ANB033 is co's experimental antibody drug to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, including celiac disease

• Satellite and telco sector: ASTS was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank with an unchanged price target of $93 saying with the stock down about 65% from its all-time high seen this past May, the firm sees an opportune time to become more constructive given both recent weakness and a number of positive developments that have gone under the radar. TMUS was upgraded from Market Perform to Outperform at Raymond James ahead of results saying believes the recent fears over competition form SpaceX are overblown, as they are 3+ years away from becoming reality, and competition from larger players is nothing new to T Mobile.
• Aerospace & Defense sector: Goldman Sachs previewed the sector saying they favor HII (on CL), WWD, TDG, ARXS, AVEX and are cautious on LMT, BAH, MRCY. They see High-Bandwidth Flash (HBF) and other high-performance NAND solutions as a promising answer to AI inference memory bottlenecks, and estimate a $40-$150B TAM by 2030, with HBF potentially lowering inference throughput cost by roughly 30% through better GPU utilization. While adoption remains early and technically challenging, we think HBF could extend tight NAND fundamentals.

• AI sector: AMZN is in talks to acquire artificial-intelligence startup Decart in a deal that could be valued at around $7 billion, the WSJ reported citing people familiar with the matter. Decart’s software makes it easier for developers to switch between different AI chips. META shares rise as CEO Zuckerberg hints Meta's strongest model Watermelon is coming soon.
• Cable sector: CABO provides update on the pending purchase of Mega Broadband; U.S. court issues TRO prohibiting Cable One from acquiring 55% of MBI on October 9th; CABO makes substantial progress toward financing transactions with GTCR and lenders; transactions expected to extend and reduce revolving credit facility, pay down b-4 term loan.
• Quantum sector: IONQ to acquire Elisity to accelerate zero Trust for the Quantum Era in all-stock deal valued up to $1.3B. The deal value includes up to $150 million in earn-outs tied to Elisity's performance; share price for deal capped at $49.61, floor at $33.07 per share.
• Media sector: BMBL shares jumped after the WSJ reported the dating app is in advanced talks to be taken private in a deal that values it at roughly $1B, according to people familiar with the matter. The buyer is Ithaca Holdings, a firm founded recently by two Silicon Valley executives.

• ADBE was downgraded to Underweight at Wells Fargo saying Q3 results were fairly muted and suggestive that more meaningful cracks are now starting to show in the Adobe growth profile.
• CCC shares jumped after Bloomberg reported Private equity firm GTCR and activist investor Elliott Mgmt are in advanced talks to acquire the software provider https://tinyurl.com/3bhukz7k
• CRM was upgraded to Buy from Underperform at Banc America and raised the tgt to $285 from $160 saying prior concern was centered on AI-driven disintermediation, but conversations with CIOs and other market participants suggest that large enterprises are unlikely to replace platforms that house their business logic, data, workflows and compliance frameworks.
• HUBS was downgraded from Overweight to Equal Weight at Barclays with $240 tgt as its original thesis was centered on the belief that Ai usage would drive a growth acceleration by unlocking incremental wallet share through credits-based monetization. While remains constructive on that long-term opportunity, it now believes the timing will take longer than expected.
• MANH was upgraded to Overweight at Morgan Stanley saying Cloud bookings have accelerated to 30%+, while 2H Cloud revenue guidance looks conservative, setting up estimate upside to consensus' 20% Cloud growth in FY27.  
• MNDY was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclay’s with an unchanged price target of $100 saying believes the company's AI monetization story is gaining traction but remains in the early innings and is not enough to offset a deceleration in Monday.com's core growth.

• Memory and HDD stocks MU, SNDK, WDC, STX weaker after reports that CXMT is making progress on a new memory chip architecture designed to increase storage density, raising incremental competitive concerns around the memory landscape.  https://tinyurl.com/ykr3hstw
• Anthropic is still the main event Wednesday, when some investors gather at its San Francisco headquarters.
• ASML will raise the price of spare Parts for DUV and EUV Tools by 10% from January 2027 onwards, according to reports.
• CRUS had offered to acquire SYNA in September, as the semiconductor company looked to fend off a competing bid from ON, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The report came after onsemi agreed to acquire Synaptics for $123 per share in an all-cash deal worth roughly $5.7B last week, revising its previous all-stock bid worth about $7B disclosed in June.
• NVDA in talks to acquire Frontier open-weight LLM developer Reflection Ai in a deal that could exceed $25B, potentially deepening its competition with major foundation model providers - Financial Times reported this weekend.
• TTMI announces $400M investment plan in China and Malaysia; expansion initiative represents incremental investments to the previously disclosed commitment to invest $1.2B through the 2025-2029 timeframe.

Street Recommendations

Monday, October 12, 2026

• HUBS Barclays downgraded HubSpot to Equal Weight from Overweight with an unchanged price target of $240. The firm says its buy thesis centered on the belief that HubSpot's AI usage would drive a growth acceleration. While the firm remains constructive on the company's long-term opportunity, it now believes the timing will take longer than expected. At its analyst day, HubSpot repeatedly highlighted that customers remain cautious as they navigate the AI transition, Barclays points out.
• VFC Barclays analyst Adrienne Yih raised the firm's price target on VF Corp. to $24 from $23 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares as part of a fiscal Q2 earnings preview. The debate remains on Vans, but evidence continues to build, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says improving brand momentum, stronger consumer engagement, and favorable inventory metrics across Vans complements brand momentum at The North Face and Timberland.

• TRNO BMO Capital upgraded Terreno Realty to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $75, up from $74. The firm says the company's "supply-constrained" infill portfolio, focused on six major coastal markets, will likely get a "significant demand catalyst" from Amazon's reported Project Mercury as it expands same-day delivery networks. Inreasing rents in Terreno's submarkets will keep the company's embedded growth more sustainable, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• CRM BofA analyst Tal Liani upgraded Salesforce to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $285, up from $160. The firm's previous concern centered on AI-driven disintermediation, but conversations with CIOs and other market participants suggest that large enterprises are unlikely to replace platforms that house their business logic, data, workflows and compliance frameworks, the analyst tells investors. If anything, AI should deepen dependence on these platforms, the analyst added.
• TFII BofA lowered the firm's price target on TFI International to $164 from $187 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm lowered its Q3 EPS view 3% to $1.75, the midpoint of TFI's $1.70-$1.80 target range, led by an unfavorable fuel surcharge lag in the truckload segment.
• IDA BofA analyst Ross Fowler lowered the firm's price target on Idacorp to $145 from $163 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm expect Q3 EPS of $2.50, up from $2.26 in the same quarter of last year, and expects management to reaffirm 2026 EPS guidance of $6.30-$6.45.
• AMGN BofA analyst Tazeen Ahmad raised the firm's price target on Amgen to $328 from $317 and keeps an Underperform rating on the shares after updating estimates ahead of the company's Q3 report. While acknowledging commercial strength and incremental biosimilar value, the firm is maintaining "a more measured view" on pipeline execution and its potential contribution to longer-term growth.

• QNRX BTIG initiated coverage of Quoin Pharmaceuticals with a Buy rating and $14 price target. Quoin is developing QRX003 for Netherton Syndrome, notes the analyst, who see QRX003's broad kallikrein inhibition as differentiated and its clinical responses and clean safety profile addressing "the large unmet need" for a rare skin disease with no FDA-approved therapies and an estimated 1,600-3,000 diagnosed patients in the U.S. today.

• TXG Canaccord analyst Kyle Mikson raised the firm's price target on 10x Genomics to $100 from $60 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm sees increasing utilization of and a potential tailwind from AI in life science tools. The broad range of recent news flow reflect increasing efforts in AI-driven drug discovery, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Canaccord recognizes concerns regarding bioweapons and AI, but believes there are sufficient safeguards in place. It views the concerns are transitory in nature. It cites increased revenue estimates and margin expansion, partially due to AI-related benefits and tailwinds, for the target boost.
• BFLY Canaccord analyst William Plovanic initiated coverage of Butterfly Network with a Buy rating and $10 price target. The firm believes Butterfly is nearing an acceleration in both market adoption and overall revenue growth, driven by new product launches and enterprise integration. The company has "significant potential upside" from partnerships that leverage both its underlying technology and AI, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Canaccord believes Butterfly "embodies core themes" of the evolving medtech industry as it leverages both semiconductor technology and AI to democratize healthcare.

• MRK Citi raised the firm's price target on Merck to $145 from $125 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The firm says the biopharma backdrop "remains constructive" into the Q3 earnings reports due to volume growth, rising generalist participation, and reduced policy concerns.
• IR Citi analyst Andrew Kaplowitz opened an "upside 90-day catalyst watch" on Ingersoll-Rand while keeping a Buy rating on the shares with a $109 price target. Citi sees improving organic sales going forward for Ingersoll-Rand despite investor skepticism.

• CHRW Deutsche Bank downgraded C.H. Robinson to Hold from Buy with a $153 price target.

• HOOD Evercore ISI initiated coverage of Robinhood with an Outperform rating and $130 price target. Robinhood is "a very impressive company" that achieved a significant user and deposit base in a relatively short period of time, says the analyst, whose positive thesis is rooted in the company's creation and monetization of a deep and growing product flywheel with world class UX that aims to be a "one stop shop" for financial services.
• IBKR Evercore ISI initiated coverage of Interactive Brokers with an Outperform rating and $100 price target. Supported by a "superior" net interest income engine that attracts and grows client cash, with higher rates adding earnings leverage to its "peer-leading" 75% operating margins, the firm sees "a compelling long opportunity," the analyst tells investors.

• LPX Goldman Sachs lowered the firm's price target on LP Building Solutions to $64 from $74 and keeps a Sell rating on the shares. After a stronger-than-expected Q2 driven by share gains, innovation, cost actions, and tariff refunds, results are expected to moderate amid weaker demand, higher mortgage rates, soft consumer confidence, and rising input costs, with cautious management commentary and Q4/2026 guidance likely narrowed to around or slightly below the prior range's low end, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• ACT JPMorgan downgraded Enact Holdings to Underweight from Neutral with a price target of $44, down from $48. The stock trades above Enact's historic average and at a relative premium compared to peers, which will limit further upside from here, the analyst tells investors in a research note. JPMorgan also believes the the higher interest rate environment could be a "mixed bag" for the company, saying it could limit new mortgage activity and stress credit.
• SANM JPMorgan raised the firm's price target on Sanmina to $270 from $260 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. JPMorgan also placed Sanmina on "Positive Catalyst Watch" heading into the fiscal Q4 earnings report. The firm sees a positive setup for the shares into earnings. Sanmina's fiscal 2027 guidance should embed the revenue ramp opportunity relative to AMD Helios racks, which is expected to track ahead of consensus expectations, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• MANH Morgan Stanley upgraded Manhattan Associates to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $250, up from $180. Cloud bookings have accelerated to 30%-plus and second half cloud revenue guidance "looks conservative," creating upside to estimates, the analyst tells investors.
• EBAY Morgan Stanley analyst Nathan Feather raised the firm's price target on eBay to $132 from $127 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares, which the analyst also made his Top Pick among his coverage. The Live Commerce market has started to take off in the U.S., growing greater than five times to $27B over the past two years, notes the analyst, who thinks Live is responsible for 40% or more of eBay's FY26 GMV growth and calls it "the missing piece which explains the recent acceleration." Going forward, the firm estimates Live alone can contribute about four points of annual GMV growth from FY26-FY30, helping EBAY sustain GMV growth well above consensus, the analyst added.
• SLM Morgan Stanley upgraded SLM to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $30, up from $28. Macro and rate concerns that have helped drive shares 15% lower over the past month offer a buying opportunity ahead of a strong earnings ramp from here, bolstered by capital-light economics from its new private credit partnerships, the analyst tells investors.

• ENOV Needham lowered the firm's price target on Enovis to $34 from $52 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm is updating its model to reflect the dilution of the company's eCential Robotics acquisition, expected to close by the end of this year, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• HIG Truist initiated coverage of Hartford with a Hold rating and $137 price target. The Hartford's diversified P&C, Personal Insurance, and Employee Benefits businesses provide balanced revenue exposure, with recent M&A expected to strengthen Employee Benefits and the Hartford Funds sale set to simplify operations and generate future cash proceeds, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• NKTR UBS initiated coverage of Nektar with a Neutral rating and $53 price target. Nektar is the leader in the regulatory T cell space, with a promising immunology approach and broad potential across immune diseases, the analyst tells investors in a research note. However, the firm thinks the stock "may be stuck for now" given the lack of major catalysts ahead of rezpegaldesleukin Phase 3 readouts in 2028.
• WDC UBS lowered the firm's price target on Western Digital to $470 from $525 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. Western Digital is expected to beat September-quarter consensus and guidance with $4.27B revenue and $4.40 EPS, followed by a stronger December quarter on rising enterprise shipments, pricing, and gross margins, though the firm cautions that the market is underestimating HDD cyclicality and the potential for a downturn in late 2028 or early 2029, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• ALL Wells Fargo analyst Elyse Greenspan upgraded Allstate to Equal Weight from Underweight with a price target of $236, down from $250 following recent underperformance. The firm notes the shares have significantly underperformed since the start of September in part due to the Muse rollout at the start of the month, presenting a significant use case for personal auto shopping, which can lead to more elevated levels of shopping going forward as more consumers adopt the use of agentic AI.
• AMGN Wells Fargo lowered the firm's price target on Amgen to $430 from $435 following pipeline valuation updates, while keeping an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm expects a modest Q3 beat driven in part by Repatha, Enbrel, and Uplizna. Looking ahead, detailed dazodalibep Sjogren's data remains a key catalyst, Wells adds.
• ADBE Wells Fargo double downgraded Adobe to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $225, down from $270. The firm says Q3 results were fairly muted and suggestive that more meaningful cracks are now starting to show in the Adobe growth profile. Recall that the company implicitly reset its full year guidance post Q2 after it maintained full year outlook for about 10.2% ARR growth despite layering roughly $480M of inorganic Semrush contribution. Wells' calculations suggest organic NNARR declined more than 40% in Q3, while current guide suggests Q4 net new needs to nearly two-times to make full year numbers, which it views as especially difficult given recent management commentary around deferral of any core creative price increase as the company aims to prioritize freemium in an elevated competitive environment.
• TYL Wells Fargo upgraded Tyler Technologies to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $400, up from $335. The firm notes the company saw bookings headwinds given elevated U.S. public sector uncertainty in 2025 which Wells expects to weigh on total revenue growth in 2026. With that said, the firm now sees DOGE and Texas payments headwinds fading and expects a meaningful reversion opportunity in 2027.
• CRWD Wells Fargo raised the firm's price target on CrowdStrike to $300 from $235 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. Building on the firm's latest CIO AI survey, Wells is more cautious on front office and creative. With that said, the firm's ongoing field work and survey provide Wells with increased conviction around cyber as 2027 budget beneficiaries, especially the platforms.
• FIG Wells Fargo lowered the firm's price target on Figma to $30 from $34 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. Building on the firm's latest CIO AI survey, Wells is more cautious on front office and creative. With that said, the firm's ongoing field work and survey provide Wells with increased conviction around cyber as 2027 budget beneficiaries, especially the platforms.
• PANW Wells Fargo analyst Michael Turrin raised the firm's price target on Palo Alto Networks to $525 from $475 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. Building on the firm's latest CIO AI survey, Wells is more cautious on front office and creative. With that said, the firm's ongoing field work and survey provide Wells with increased conviction around cyber as 2027 budget beneficiaries, especially the platforms.
• NOW Wells Fargo raised the firm's price target on ServiceNow to $190 from $175 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. Building on the firm's latest CIO AI survey, Wells is more cautious on front office and creative. With that said, the firm's ongoing field work and survey provide Wells with increased conviction around cyber as 2027 budget beneficiaries, especially the platforms.
• COMP Wells Fargo lowered the firm's price target on Compass to $10 from $13 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm is lowering second half of 2026 and 2027 estimates on macro, partially offset by franchise to O&O brokerage conversions. While setup into Q3 is challenging on estimate reset, Wells expects a positive update on exclusive inventory strategy following favorable MRED litigation outcome.

• ROIV Wolfe Research downgraded Roivant Sciences to Peer Perform from Outperform with no price target. The stock profile is changing, with good catalysts "now more scarce" and a "stretched valuation," the analyst tells investors.

Rating abbreviations…

***OP = Outperform

***SP = Sector Perform

***UP = Underperform

***OW = Overweight

***EW = Equal-weight

***UW = Underweight

***Report powered by thefly.com***

What’s on Tap Weekly Calendar

• Earnings After the Close: None

• 7:45 AM ET ICSC Weekly Retail Sales
• 8:55 AM ET                   Johnson/Redbook Weekly Sales
• 10:00 AM ET                 Existing Home Sales M/M for September

• Earnings After the Close: AZZ

• Paris Auto show, 10/12-10/18
• SEMICON West, 10/13-10/14, in San Francisco, CA
• China Imports/Exports/Trade Balance for September
• China PPI, CPI data for September

• 8:30 AM ET                   Consumer Price Index (CPI) headline M/M for September
• 8:30 AM ET                   Consumer Price Index (CPI) headline Y/Y for September
• 8:30 AM ET CPI core: Ex: Food & Energy M/M for September
• 8:30 AM ET CPI core: Ex: Food & Energy Y/Y for September
• 10:30 AM ET                 Weekly DOE Inventory Data
• 11:00 AM ET                 Cleveland Fed CPI for September

• Earnings After the Close: EDUC EQBK HOMB

• Paris Auto show, 10/12-10/18
• SEMICON West, 10/13-10/14, in San Francisco, CA

• 8:30 AM ET                   Continuing Claims
• 8:30 AM ET                   Empire Manufacturing for October
• 8:30 AM ET                   Philly Fed Business Index for October
• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) headline M/M for September
• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) headline Y/Y for September
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core: Ex: Food & Energy M/M for September
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core: Ex: Food & Energy Y/Y for September
• 8:30 AM ET                   Retail Sales M/M for September
• 8:30 AM ET                   Retail Sales – Less Autos for September
• 10:00 AM ET                 Business Inventories M/M for August
• 10:30 AM ET                 Weekly EIA Natural Gas Inventory Data
• 12:00 PM ET EIA Weekly Inventory Data

• Earnings After the Close: AA IBKR INDB JBHT SFNC WAFD WSE

.