Early Look

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

U.S. and European equity futures are seeing gains along with big jumps in Asian markets as positive sentiment was supported by a drop in crude with WTI crude falling to around $93 per barrel and positioning ahead of today’s FOMC policy meeting. The Fed is expected to hold interest rates steady and update its interest rate and economic projections. Today is also February Producer Price Index (PPI) inflation data at 8:30 am et. Stocks gained broadly on Tuesday for the second consecutive day on optimism that higher oil prices won’t lead to a significant uptick in inflation. With the Fed expected to remain on hold for the next several months, traders will focus on comments by Powell for any fresh clues on the path of monetary policy. Traders are pricing in 27 basis points of cuts by year-end, down from over 50 basis points before the U.S.-Israel war on Iran broke out two and a half weeks ago. In Asian markets, The Nikkei Index surged 1539 points or 2.87% to 55,239, the Shanghai Index rose 13 points to 4,062, and the Hang Seng Index advanced 156 points to 26,025. In Europe, the German DAX is up 212 points to 23,943, while the FTSE 100 is up 33 points to 10,437. Overnight stock news, Lululemon shares dip after earnings results, optical stocks AAOI, LITE, COHR are looking at a big bounce after selling pressure yesterday. Chip stocks helped lead stock futures higher, after Nvidia said Tuesday it had restarted manufacturing of its H200 processors for sale in China. Energy stocks retreated slightly premarket.

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 46.85 points, or 0.10%, to 46,993.26
• The Nasdaq Composite gained 105.35 points, or 0.47%, to 22,479.53
• The Russell 2000 Index advanced 16.70 points, or 0.67% to 2,519.99

• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) Headline M/M for February…est. +0.3% (prior -0.1%)
• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) Headline Y/Y for February…est. +2.9% (prior +2.6%)
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core - Ex: Food & energy M/M for February…est. +0.3% (prior -0.1%)
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core - Ex: Food & energy Y/Y for February…est. +3.7% (prior +3.1%)
• 10:00 AM ET                 Durable Goods orders M/M for January
• 10:00 AM ET                 Factory Orders M/M for January…est. +0.1%
• 10:30 AM ET                 Weekly DOE Inventory Data
• 2:00 PM ET FOMC Interest rate Meeting – no change is expected
• 4:00 PM ET                    Net Long-term TIC flows for January

• Earnings After the Close: ALVO DLO FIVE HYPR MU RCAT USIO

• Keybanc Virtual Healthcare Forum, 3/17-3/18
• Oppenheimer 36th Annual Healthcare MedTech & Services Conference, 3/16-3/19
• Piper 26^th Annual Energy Conference, 3/16-3/18, in Las Vegas, NV
• Sidoti Smallcap Conference, 3/8-3/19 (virtual)

• Lululemon (LULU) Q4 revs rose 1% y/y to $3.6B vs. est. $3.58B; Q4 comp sales grew 3% Q4 Americas net revenue decreased 4%, or 5% on a constant dollar basis and international net revenue increased 17%, or 14% on a constant dollar basis; sees Q1 EPS $1.63-$1.68 vs. est. $2.07 and sees Q1 revs $2.4B-$2.43B vs. est. $2.47B; guides year EPS $12.1-$12.3 vs. est. $13.10 and revs $11.35B-$11.5B vs. est. $11.04B

• CF Industries (CF) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Mizuho while raise PT to $100 from $95 citing the big run-up in CF and other fertilizer stocks in 2026 for the downgrade. The gains from the surge in oil and fertilizer prices due to the Middle East conflict have likely already been captured and are overdone. The surge in nitrogen prices is not long-lasting and will come down when the conflict ends, contends the firm
• Oklo Inc. (OKLO) reports FY25 EPS loss (-$0.72) with FY25 loss $105.7M and reports FY25 operating expenses $139.294M vs $52.801M last year; announced the U.S. Department of Energy approved the Nuclear Safety Design Agreement for Atomic Alchemy's Groves Isotopes Test Reactor in Texas under the DOE's Reactor Pilot Program
• Rocket Lab Corp (RKLB) said may offer common stock with aggregate offering price up to $1B
• T1 Energy (TE) said Norway's grid operator Statnett assigned 50 megawatts (MW) of power to its 926,000-square-foot industrial building in Mo i Rana; says it remains in the interconnection queue for 396MW of power; says the 50‑megawatt allocation would support data center operations from as early as Q2’27 and run through end‑2033.

• HealthEquity (HQY) Q4 EPS $0.95 vs. est. $0.90 and revs rose 7% y/y to $334.6M vs. est. $332.82M; said raising FY27 guidance after delivering record new HSAs from sales and significant margin expansion; for Q4 added one million new HSAs from sales for the second consecutive year and ended fiscal 2026 with 17.8M total accounts; sees FY27 EPS $4.56-$4.65, vs. consensus $4.54 and sales $1.41B-$1.42B vs. est. $1.41B.
• Lantheus Holdings (LNTH) said the FDA has extended its review of the company's diagnostic imaging kit by three months; the agency will now give its decision on the imaging kit's approval by June 29.

• Docusign (DOCU) Q4 EPS $1.01 tops consensus $0.95; Q4 revs rose 8% y/y to $836.9M vs. est. $828.22M; sees FY27 revenue $3.484B-$3.496B above consensus $3.42B while sees FY27 Annual recurring revenue (ARR) y/y growth rate 8.25%-8.75%; Non-GAAP gross margin 81.5%-82.0%; and Non-GAAP operating margin 30.0%-30.5%; announced $2B increase to share repurchase program.
• Microsoft (MSFT) is weighing legal action against Amazon (AMZN) and OpenAI over a $50B deal that may breach its exclusive cloud partnership with OpenAI – Financial Times.
• Tencent Holdings (TCEHY) reported a 13% increase in Q4 revenue, driven by strong demand for gaming and growth in ‌its artificial intelligence services; posted revenue of 194.4 billion yuan ($28.3 billion) for the three months to ​December 31, just above the 193.5 billion yuan forecast by analysts
• Banks prepare to offload $18bn in debt tied to Electronic Arts (EA) take-private deal – FT reports.

Mid-Morning Look

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

U.S. stocks slip early on FOMC policy day, and bond yields spiked (initially) after the U.S. producer price index (PPI) for February was much “hotter” than economists expected (raising chances of no rate cuts this year), while more headlines of energy/oil targets being hit in the Middle East is lifting energy prices and weighing sentiment as well. Stocks slipped off overnight highs while precious metals (gold, silver, platinum) fall; the dollar bounces along with oil on reports of Israeli strikes on Iranian gas facilities this morning, as headlines in the Middle East overnight dominating morning trading. The war in Iran increases both the risk that earlier rate cuts will eventually be needed to address labor market softening and the risk that a higher inflation path will delay cuts. Brent crude futures soared to about $108 a barrel and WTI crude, the U.S. benchmark, rose 1%, reversing an earlier decline. Investors widely expect Fed officials to hold rates steady in a range between 3.5% and 3.75% at 2 p.m. ET and will closely watch for signals on the future trajectory of rates. Note with more than half the month over, gold prices are on pace for its first red month since July 2025 and silver on pace for its first red month since April 2025. On the flip side, Bitcoin is on pace for its first green month since September 2025 (but down today) and Ethereum on pace for its first green month since August 2025.

Among the most attention grabbing headlines related to Iran this morning included: 1) Iran launched fresh waves of missile and drone attacks, targeting the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The attacks followed Iran confirming the assassination of its security chief, Ali Larijani, in an Israeli strike. 2) Iran’s military vowed to avenge the killing of Larijani as well as that of Gholamreza Soleimani, the head of the Basij paramilitary unit, which the government uses to maintain internal security in Iran. 3) Iraq started exporting oil from its Kirkuk fields after reaching a deal with Kurdistan to resume flows through a pipeline in the semi-autonomous region, as the OPEC’s second-largest producer tries to ease the impact of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. 4) A senior Israeli official says the Israeli Air Force hit a major natural gas processing facility in southwest Iran, targeting critical energy infrastructure in coordination with and approved by the U.S. military leadership.

• January factory orders edged higher +0.1% M/M vs. +0.1% consensus and -0.4% (revised from -0.7%) prior while U.S. Jan factory orders ex-transportation +0.4% vs Dec +0.6% (prev +0.4%).
• MBA weekly data showed US mortgage purchase index climbs 0.9% to 172.9 in latest week as the mortgage market index -10.9% to 347.1 in week and mortgage refinance index falls 18.5% to 1,341.0 as the average 30-year mortgage rate climbs 11 bps to 6.30% in March 13 week, highest since December 2025.

• In Crypto/Stablecoin: Citigroup said despite positive rhetoric from some industry players, legislative momentum for CLARITY remains stalled as stakeholders continue to debate key items. Citi says there's still chance for a new markup by late March with the stated goal post remaining April/May for Passage, though this might involve some compromise on the key debate of stablecoin rewards. Maintains CRCL and BLSH as its top picks with both benefiting from more idiosyncratic factors, while downgraded tgts on Bitcoin and Ethereum while downgrading GEMI to Sell on profitability trajectory concerns amidst cyclical challenges and significant restructuring.
• In Nuclear/Power: OKLO reports FY25 EPS loss (-$0.72) with FY25 loss $105.7M and reports FY25 operating expenses $139.294M vs $52.801M last year; announced the U.S. Department of Energy approved the Nuclear Safety Design Agreement for Atomic Alchemy's Groves Isotopes Test Reactor in Texas under the DOE's Reactor Pilot Program; TE shares rose after saying Norway's grid operator Statnett assigned 50 megawatts (MW) of power to its 926,000-square-foot industrial building in Mo i Rana. NRG was upgraded from Peer Perform to Outperform at Wolfe Research with $190 tgt saying the company has an incumbent retail/generation business in the Texas market that generates significant Free Cash Flow.

• DOCU +2%; posted better-than-expected Q4 EPS while Q1 and full-year revenue guidance also beat estimates, while headline ’27 guides for ARR of 8.25-8.75% and revenue guided to 8.4% vs. the Street at 6.6%.
• LULU +3%; announced a better Q4, with revenue and EPS faring slightly better than expectations, while FY26 EPS guidance for $12.10-$12.30 missed Street estimate $12.50 with pressure reflecting unfavorable gross margin (-100bps vs. Stifel outlook) and SG&A guidance (80bps deleverage vs. Stifel outlook)
• M +3%; shares rose after reported better-than-expected adjusted EPS and sales results for its fourth quarter and gave guidance that was better than some analysts feared; Same-store sales at locations open for more than a year rose 1.8%, better than the -0.9% consensus decline.
• OVID +18%; after earnings results and reported what it called favorable topline safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics from a study of one of its therapies, OV329; also said it will add complementary development programs for the treatment, expanding into tuberous sclerosis complex seizures and infantile spasms.
• XYZ +2%; upgraded to Buy from Hold at Truist and raise tgt to $77, following the company's recent announcement of a 40% reduction in its workforce; sees mid-to-high single digit upside to the Street's out-year EPS forecasts coming from Cash App gross profit upside, better than expected margin expansion and buybacks.

• GEMI -16%; as Citigroup downgraded shares of the cryptocurrency exchange, which went public in September, to Sell from Neutral and cut its price target to $5.50 from $13.
• NOW -1%; as software among early decliners in technology.
• SAIL 12%; declined after guided Q1 revenue between $273M-$277M, below the consensus view for $284M after Q4 revs rose 23% y/y to $295M beating the $292.6M estimate.
• TTD -5%; shares downgraded by Stifel, Rosenblatt after a report in Ad Age said French advertising giant Publicis Groupe told clients it no longer recommends TTD for digital media buying following an audit claiming the audit revealed fees charged beyond what the master service agreement allows

Closing Recap

Tuesday, March 17, 2026

U.S. stocks finished higher in a very choppy, narrow trading range day as all the market upside came prior to the market open (much like yesterday) just holding the remainder of the day awaiting the FOMC interest rate policy decision tomorrow. Treasury yields slipped along with the U.S. dollar and oil climbed ahead of the central bank decision. Regarding the Middle East, President Donald Trump said the U.S was not ready to leave the military operation in Iran though "we'll be leaving in pretty much the very near future". President Trump also said today that most NATO allies have told the U.S. they do not want to get involved in the war with Iran and added that the U.S. does not “need” or want military help from NATO, Japan, Australia, or South Korea. Note this week is option expiration and @AlmanacTrader noted on X, that, “March Quarterly Option Expiration Weeks have generally been bullish. S&P 500 has been up 28 times in the last 43 years while NASDAQ has advanced 26 times. More recently, S&P 500 and NASDAQ have both advanced 13 times in the last 18 weeks.” Energy, Consumer Discretionary and Financials were today’s leaders while Healthcare, Consumer Staples and Utilities finished in negative territory.

Tomorrow’s focus will be the FOMC policy meeting, where no rate change is expected but potentially hawkish commentary given the recent impact of oil prices and inflation data as the February Producer Price Index (PPI) data is released at 8:30 am et, with headline M/M expected to rise +0.3% (vs. prior -0.1%) and headline Y/Y for February est. +2.9% (prior +2.6%). Core PPI, or Ex: Food & energy M/M for February is est. to rise est. +0.3% (prior -0.1%) and core Food & energy Y/Y for February est. +3.7% (prior +3.1%). We get LULU earnings tonight in retail and a couple of retail names tomorrow morning with GIS, WSM and Macy’s.

• The U.S. rental market has reached its most budget-friendly level in four years, according to Realtor.com. February marked the 30th consecutive month of year-over-year declines for 0 to 2 bedroom properties, bringing the national median asking monthly rent to $1,667. The national median rent fell $29, or 1.7%, compared to one year ago. While monthly rents remain $207, or 14.2%, higher than pre-pandemic levels recorded in February 2020, they have now retreated $90, or 5.1%, from the summer 2022 peak.

• Oil prices rose by nearly 3% on Tuesday, with U.S. WTI crude oil futures settling at $96.21/bbl, up $2.71, or 2.90%, clawing back some of the previous session's losses as Iranian attacks on the United Arab Emirates rekindled supply fears while the Strait of Hormuz remains largely shut.  A large gas field in the United Arab Emirates was set ablaze after a drone strike and a vital oil port was halted again, piling pressure on energy markets and supply with each day that the Iran war goes on. U.S. diesel prices on Tuesday topped $5 per gallon for the first time in more than three years, as the escalating war in the Middle East has triggered the biggest oil supply disruption in history.

• AEVA launches CityOS, AI-powered real-time traffic intelligence platform built on NVDA AGX—turns lidar data into smart city insights for congestion, safety, and flow optimization.
• LI was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs citing limited upside to their target price.
• LIDR announced it is joining the NVIDIA Halos AI Systems Inspection Lab. NVIDIA is the first company in the world to establish an ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB)-accredited AI Systems Inspection Lab, integrating functional safety, cybersecurity, AI, and regulations into a unified safety framework.
• LYFT announced it will use NVIDIA AI to enhance the company's machine learning systems across its global operations. The work spans across AI-driven mobility services Lyft continues to invest in.
• UBER expanded its autonomous vehicle partnership with Nvidia to launch a global fleet of Nvidia software-driven autonomous vehicles across 28 cities globally by 2028.

• In Theme Parks: FUN shares were active after Reuters reported activist investor Jana Partners wants theme park operator Six Flags Entertainment to explore a sale and immediately appoint a new head of its board of directors, according to a letter reviewed by Reuters. The call for change comes just months after North America's largest regional amusement resort operator hired a new CEO.
• In Retailers: LULU earnings tonight with shares down -20% YTD into results; ASO shares slide early after guides FY26 adjusted EPS $6.10-$6.60, below consensus $6.52 and sees revenue $6.175B-$6.355B, also shy of the consensus $6.46B; CTRN a mover on earnings this morning; tomorrow morning WSM and Macy’s earnings.

• In Solar: CSIQ announced that e-STORAGE, its energy storage solutions business, has entered into supply agreement with a major U.S. utility for a 500MW/2,493 MWh DC battery energy storage system, BESS, project, supporting data center grid infrastructure and resiliency. Under the agreement, e-STORAGE will supply approximately 500 SolBank 3.0 containers. Separately, CSIQ was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Mizuho citing valuation with the shares down 31% decline since its double downgrade in November.
• In Utility/Power: OKLO announced that it had secured its first license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a federal agency that oversees the civilian use of radioactive materials. The license applies to Atomic Alchemy, a wholly owned subsidiary Oklo acquired in 2025. The license allows Atomic Alchemy to handle, process, and distribute isotopes, which can be extracted from spent nuclear fuel.

• In Private Credit: OWL triggered the recent collapse of Century Capital Partners after discovering irregularities in its financial reporting and demanding repayment. Blue Owl tipped Century Capital Partners into administration after discovering the company dismissed a director over financial discrepancies – Financial Times reports.
• In Insurance: LMND was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley, noting that the insurer is an early stage winner as autonomous vehicles transform the auto insurance industry.
• In Brokers & Exchanges: MKTX downgraded to Hold from Buy at Argus saying given that the company is a fixed-income exchange operator, the firm feels the recent move higher in rates and rate outlook will lower trading volumes, especially in the U.S.
• In Financial Services: MSCI was upgraded from Outperform to Strong Buy with $710 tgt at Raymond James as its top pick within its Information Services coverage saying sales momentum has positively inflected, MSCI faces very limited Ai risk, and now trades only marginally above the market multiple, and it views the risk/ reward attractive.
• In Payments: MA has agreed to buy stablecoin infrastructure firm BVNK for up to $1.8 billion. Mastercard said the acquisition, which includes $300 million in contingent payments, expands the Purchase, N.Y., payment giant's support of digital assets and value movement across currencies, payment rails and regions; PYPL officially rolls out stablecoin payments and holdings in 70 countries—PayPal USD now available for everyday use, transfers, and merchant acceptance globally.
• In REITs: Raymond James makes changes in net lease sector as ADC Maintain Strong Buy, EPRT, PINE Upgrade to Strong Buy (from OP), WPC upgrade to Outperform (from Market Perform), EPR, NTST downgrade to Outperform (from Strong Buy) and NNN Downgrade to Market Perform (from Outperform). Notes the net-lease sector has outperformed the REITs by ~850bp YTD, with most names now trading at (or slightly below) previously published price targets. Ray Jay continues to be bullish on the sector with 7 “buy” ratings.

• GLSI said its experimental drug GLSI-100 cut the risk of breast cancer coming back in an ongoing late‑stage study; the annual cancer return rate was under 1% in 250 patients who completed the primary injections; adds annual cancer return rate was about 4% a year in a similar group treated with standard drug Kadcyla in an earlier study.
• LLY was downgraded to Reduce from Hold at HSBC and cut its tgt to $850 from $1,070 saying thinks that the market's TAM expectations for obesity remains elevated (>USD150B). HSBC thinks that the TAM is likely to be USD80-120B by 2032e, and price competition is likely to be significant.
• RYTM announces topline results from phase 3 emanate trial saying it does not meet primary endpoints; no new safety signals observed with setmelanotide in emanate trial; Four sub-studies did not meet pre-specified primary endpoints.

• In Insulin Sector: TNDM was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper citing improved pharmacy pricing benefits and growing international direct market opportunities; says there is meaningful upside to revenue estimates over the next three years, which will push stock higher.

• In Industrials: HON said the Middle East conflict could hit the company’s first-quarter revenue by a high-single-digit percentage; CEO said at BOFA conference that it remains confident in its 2026 forecast, viewing the disruptions as a "tactical issue" rather than demand-driven. DOV was upgraded to Overweight at Wells Fargo as expect shares to screen attractive within short-cycle for accelerating organic growth that's under way and typical short-cycle relative outperformance as the expansion advances. SEI announced it is acquiring 900 MW of gas turbines with deliveries from 2026-29. The 900 MW will be added through: 1) the acquisition of Genco Power Solutions that includes 400 MW; 2) the purchase of 30 Turbine delivery slots for 500 MW delivering early 27-29.
• In Aerospace & Defense: BA CFO said the company expects its commercial airplane division to turn a profit in 2027, not this year as previously expected due to higher-than-expected costs of its purchase of parts supplier Spirit AeroSystems; Reuters reported the price tag for the Golden Dome missile Defense shield has grown to $185B, up $10B, to accelerate key space-based capabilities, the program's director said on Tuesday, adding that LMT, RTX and NOC have joined as prime contractors.

• In Paper & Packaging: Jefferies notes RISI is reporting SW is out with a $50/ton Kraft Paper increase effective April 15th, which could boost EBITDA by ~$40 mil if the full increase sticks. Kraft Paper is a niche category that has seen solid growth from secular tailwinds from sustainability, and SW has a market-leading position.

• Optical and photonic stocks were weaker (AAOI, CIEN, COHR, LITE) after NVDA CEO Jensen Huang’s comments that copper wires remain important in server racks, while seen as positive for APH, CRDO. Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said the company intends to use both copper and optical networking-not one at the expense of the other. "For everybody who is in our ecosystem, we need a lot more capacity," Huang said.
• Data Center/AI infrastructure: NBIS shares fall after unveils planned offering of $3.75 billion worth of convertible bonds in two series saying the proceeds will be used to fund construction and build-out of its data centers, among other purposes (follows rally in shares after META deals). AMZN CEO Andy Jassy said during an internal all-hands meeting he expects artificial intelligence could help cloud computing unit Amazon Web Services achieve $600 billion in annual sales, double his own prior estimate, as per Reuters.
• In Software: CRWD partners with NBIS to Secure AI Cloud Infrastructure as CrowdStrike integrates its Falcon platform into Nebius AI Cloud and enables AI-driven threat detection and unified security visibility. ADBE announces strategic partnership with NVDA to turbocharge Firefly AI models using NVIDIA's CUDA libraries and compute—aiming to supercharge Photoshop, Premiere Pro, and enterprise workflows.
• In Semiconductors: SMTC reported Q4 results that beat consensus on AI Data Center strength, with F1Q27 guide fractionally and more materially exceeded consensus, with strong strategic product sales; QCOM said it plans to buy back another $20 billion worth of shares and is raising its quarterly cash dividend.
• Memory stocks resumed surge this week after falling late last week, with shares of MU hitting all-time highs today and SNDK, WDC also surging amid rising memory prices.
• Digital Media: TTD shares tumbled late day after adage.com reported Publicis Groupe is telling clients it will no longer recommend The Trade Desk as a demand-side platform for digital media buying following a recently completed audit. https://tinyurl.com/65yh4dsb

Street Recommendations

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

• DLR Barclays raised the firm's price target on Digital Realty to $182 from $164 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm increased estimates in communications infrastructure to reflect strong demand, which it views as sustainable.
• EQIX Barclays raised the firm's price target on Equinix to $1,020 from $870 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm increased estimates in communications infrastructure to reflect strong demand, which it views as sustainable.
• LULU Barclays lowered the firm's price target on Lululemon to $161 from $203 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The company's Q4 results beat consensus on sales and gross margin, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says Lululemon's fiscal 2026 outlook calls for ongoing Americas pressure, with 2026 to serve as the region's "reset" year.

• CF BMO Capital raised the firm's price target on CF Industries to $140 from $115 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares as part of a broader research note on Fertilizers & Chemicals. The firm believes that higher nitrogen, phosphate, sulfur and methanol prices will persist for a few months before coming down over a year to pre-war levels, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Spot prices are still well below prior peaks and incremental industry shocks are still possible, BMO added.
• NTR BMO Capital raised the firm's price target on Nutrien to $90 from $85 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares as part of a broader research note on Fertilizers & Chemicals. The firm believes that higher nitrogen, phosphate, sulfur and methanol prices will persist for a few months before coming down over a year to pre-war levels, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Spot prices are still well below prior peaks and incremental industry shocks are still possible, BMO added.

• APLS Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Steve Seedhouse lowered the firm's price target on Apellis to $31 from $35 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm updated its model following the Q4 earnings report, including pruning estimates for both Syfovre and Empaveli, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• RIOT Citi lowered the firm's price target on Riot Platforms to $21 from $23 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm says legislative momentum for the CLARITY Act is "stalled" as key items continued to be debated. Citi reduced estimates in the digital assets space to reflect its bitcoin base forecast declining to $112,000 from $143,000.
• MSTR Citi lowered the firm's price target on Strategy to $260 from $325 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm says legislative momentum for the CLARITY Act is "stalled" as key items continued to be debated. Citi reduced estimates in the digital assets space to reflect its bitcoin base forecast declining to $112,000 from $143,000.
• STZ Citi upgraded Constellation Brands to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $175, up from $155. Beer scanner data has improved ahead the summer season, the analyst tells investors in a research note. In addition, Citi says Constellation's compares remain easy through 2026 as the company cycles through the beer category weakness of last year. Citi cites the stock's historically low valuation levels and Constellation's improved sales trends for the upgrade.

• DIS Guggenheim lowered the firm's price target on Disney to $115 from $140 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares as the firm reassesses its valuation metrics and the path ahead with Josh D'Amaro becoming CEO today. Since outgoing CEO Bob Iger returned in late 2022 and current CFO Hugh Johnston took that post in December 2023, Disney shares have underperformed the S&P 500 by 60% and 38%, respectively, notes the analyst, who sees several opportunities to rebuild investor confidence.
• CTMX Guggenheim raised the firm's price target on CytomX Therapeutics to $15 from $10 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The firm, which is updating its model and estimates following the company's recent disclosure of updated Phase 1 results in late-line CRC for lead asset Varseta-M, says the data for both the 8.6 and 10mg/kg dose levels exceeds the benchmarks for current standard of care options by "a wide margin," which justifies increasing its view of the odds of success to 60% from 30% previously.

• IBM JPMorgan lowered the firm's price target on IBM to $283 from $317 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares after the company completed its $11B acquisition of Confluent. JPMorgan views the early completion of the deal positively. The firm cites recent peer multiple compression for the target cut. JPMorgan views IBM's risk/reward as balanced at current valuation levels.

• LEN Keefe Bruyette analyst Jade Rahmani lowered the firm's price target on Lennar to $105 from $115 and keeps a Market Perform rating on the shares. The housing market remains soft driven by challenging conditions including cautious consumer sentiment and mixed macroeconomic factors, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• TME Mizuho analyst Wei Fang lowered the firm's price target on Tencent Music to $23 from $28 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares following the Q4 report. The firm sees uncertainties for Tencent Music around competition and AI weighing on the shares. The company faces a "dilemma between near-term operating metrics vs strategic execution," the analyst tells investors in a research note. Mizuho cites execution uncertainties for the target cut.

• VIAV Rosenblatt analyst Mike Genovese raised the firm's price target on Viavi to $42 from $27 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares following an "upbeat" meeting with management at the OFC trade show. The firm, which sees multiple drivers of upside at Viavi, notes that its FY27 EPS estimate of $1.50 is a "solid upside scenario versus consensus at $1.01, but below the most bullish scenario of $2 in FY27 earning power."
• NVDA Rosenblatt analyst Kevin Cassidy raised the firm's price target on Nvidia to $325 from $300 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares following management's meeting with financial analysts. Rosenblatt updated Nvidia's model to reflect its guidance for $1 trillion in Blackwell and Rubin revenue from 2025 through 2027. The firm included an additional $25B for Groq language processing unit, Vera standalone and Rubin Ultra revenue in the second half of fiscal 2028. The analyst is "convinced" that as the AI market accelerates growth with inference stage applications, Nvidia-based platforms will continue to lead the industry.
• PTC Rosenblatt lowered the firm's price target on PTC to $190 from $220 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares after the company completed the previously announced sale of the Kepware industrial connectivity and ThingWorx Internet of Things businesses to TPG. The firm is adjusting its estimates for FY26-27, largely reflecting the divestitures.

• LULU Stifel lowered the firm's price target on Lululemon to $176 from $210 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. FY26 EPS guidance of $12.10-$12.30 missed Stifel's prior $13.55 estimate, notes the analyst, who contends that neither Q4 results or the outlook into 2026 contemplate a return to growth sufficient to lever the cost structure or "inspire greater confidence in growth."

• ASO Truist lowered the firm's price target on Academy Sports to $52 from $59 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. The stock fell into double digits as Q4 results missed consensus expectations, with soft traffic more than offsetting significant AUR - or average unit retail - growth, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm adds it is encouraged by the company's strong start to Q1 with several catalysts on the horizon but remains cautious on potential headwinds facing Academy Sports' core lower and middle-income consumer base
• AJG Truist lowered the firm's price target on Arthur J. Gallagher to $235 from $271 to reflect pressures on valuations across the peer group and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. The company's CEO remains constructive regarding the insurance market backdrop and continues to view conditions as rational, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm adds conditions are similar to Q4 as global renewal premium changes are in low single digits, with property decreases offset by casualty increases.
• BSX Truist analyst Richard Newitter lowered the firm's price target on Boston Scientific to $92 from $95 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares ahead of the company's CHAMPION-AF readout. The firm says it expects positive trial data hitting endpoints, and this should lead to an expanded WATCHMAN indication, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• LULU Truist lowered the firm's price target on Lululemon to $170 from $200 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares after its Q4 results and below-consensus Q1 guidance. The firm notes that while the 2026 outlook largely met the buy-side bar, the investors were far less focused on the guidance given the ongoing CEO transition. Given the current level of uncertainty, which includes an assumed back half-weighted acceleration in U.S. business, Truist believes it is best to remain on the sidelines, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

• LYB UBS upgraded LyondellBasell to Neutral from Sell with a $73 price target. The firm cites higher oil price assumptions and a tighter chemical market due to the Middle East conflict for the upgrade. Near-term stock momentum is biased upward for LyondellBasell and the chemical players, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• DOCU UBS lowered the firm's price target on DocuSign to $54 from $75 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The key catalyst to reverse the material de-rating across application software stocks is a bending of the growth curve as AI revenues kick-in, the analyst tells investors in a research note. DocuSign's full year FY27 outlook for a slight deceleration in total constant currency revenue growth to about 7%, still below the long-term goal for a return to 10%+ growth, won't be enough to shift investor sentiment, the firm says.
• SMR UBS lowered the firm's price target on NuScale Power to $13 from $20 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The firm is cautiously optimistic on the outlook for U.S. nuclear development broadly with concerns over capital needs for project development and potential delays and cost overruns, the analyst tells investors in a research note.
• LULU UBS lowered the firm's price target on Lululemon to $176 from $189 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The upside case is that Lululemon appoints a new CEO who reinvigorates confidence and drives expectations for a sustained multiyear sales and margin recovery, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The downside case is an uninspiring CEO announcement coupled with further deterioration in U.S. fundamentals, resulting in EPS downgrades and multiple compression, with 4Q25 results suggesting either outcome is plausible, the firm says.

• TLS Wedbush lowered the firm's price target on Telos to $8 from $10 following the recent software selloff, while keeping an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm remains confident in the Telos growth story heading into FY26, as it continues to see strong demand for its federal offerings.

• ECL Wells Fargo analyst Jason Haas lowered the firm's price target on Ecolab to $285 from $310 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm expects Ecolab earnings to be pinched due to a delay between higher energy costs and its energy surcharge implementation. Wells also continues to see volume headwinds in the paper and basic industries end market, but expects improvement through 2026.
• ASO Wells Fargo lowered the firm's price target on Academy Sports to $52 from $57 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm sees improvements in comparable sales ex-weather, with some visibility on new store/e-commerce curve, while idiosyncratic drivers are offset by macro caution. SG&A should moderate, but Academy Sports needs to prove out the positive comparable sales story to work, Wells adds.
• DOCU Wells Fargo lowered the firm's price target on DocuSign to $60 from $75 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm says Q4 was in-line although a touch below recent beats, while new ARR guide calls for about 50bps acceleration into FY27. Wells sees investments into R&D limiting margin expansion going forward, with new disclosures requiring some go forward recalibration.
• CLH Wells Fargo analyst Jerry Revich raised the firm's price target on Clean Harbors to $309 from $291 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The firm remains positive on the Environmental Services group where it sees attractive, uncorrelated pricing-led growth and accelerating free cash flow. After meaningful recycling headwinds last year, recycled commodity prices are now set to drive an earnings tailwind, Wells adds.
• RSG Wells Fargo raised the firm's price target on Republic Services to $252 from $238 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm remains positive on the Environmental Services group where it sees attractive, uncorrelated pricing-led growth and accelerating free cash flow. After meaningful recycling headwinds last year, recycled commodity prices are now set to drive an earnings tailwind, Wells adds.
• WM Wells Fargo analyst Jerry Revich raised the firm's price target on WM to $273 from $250 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm remains positive on the Environmental Services group where it sees attractive, uncorrelated pricing-led growth and accelerating free cash flow. After meaningful recycling headwinds last year, recycled commodity prices are now set to drive an earnings tailwind, Wells adds.

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

• 9:15 AM ET                   Industrial Production M/M for February
• 9:15 AM ET                   Capacity Utilization for February
• 10:00 AM ET NAHB Housing Market Index for March

• Earnings After the Close: AGRO AREN CATX DCGO GETY KLTR LIDR NGS PLBY SMTC TBRG ZEPP

• Oppenheimer 36th Annual Healthcare MedTech & Services Conference, 3/16-3/19
• Piper 26^th Annual Energy Conference, 3/16-3/18, in Las Vegas, NV

• 8:55 AM ET                   Johnson/Redbook Weekly Sales
• 10:00 AM ET                 Pending Home Sales M/M for February
• 1:00 PM ET US Treasury to sell $16B in 20-year auction
• 4:30 PM ET API Weekly Inventory Data

• Earnings After the Close: BOBS CBUS DOCU HQY IZEA KMTS LULU NN NRGV OKLO QFIN SCOR TRVI TTAM ZTO

• Bank America 2026 Automotive Summit, 3/17
• Bank America Global Industrials Conference, 3/17-3/19
• Keybanc Virtual Healthcare Forum, 3/17-3/18
• Oppenheimer 36th Annual Healthcare MedTech & Services Conference, 3/16-3/19
• Piper 26^th Annual Energy Conference, 3/16-3/18, in Las Vegas, NV

• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) Headline M/M for February
• 8:30 AM ET                   Producer Price Index (PPI) Headline Y/Y for February
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core - Ex: Food & energy M/M for February
• 8:30 AM ET PPI core - Ex: Food & energy Y/Y for February
• 10:00 AM ET                 Durable Goods orders M/M for January
• 10:00 AM ET                 Factory Orders M/M for January
• 10:30 AM ET                 Weekly DOE Inventory Data
• 2:00 PM ET FOMC Interest rate Meeting – no change is expected
• 4:00 PM ET                    Net Long-term TIC flows for January

• Earnings After the Close: ALVO DLO FIVE HYPR MU RCAT USIO

• Keybanc Virtual Healthcare Forum, 3/17-3/18
• Oppenheimer 36th Annual Healthcare MedTech & Services Conference, 3/16-3/19
• Piper 26^th Annual Energy Conference, 3/16-3/18, in Las Vegas, NV
• Sidoti Smallcap Conference, 3/8-3/19 (virtual)

• 8:30 AM ET                   Continuing Claims
• 8:30 AM ET                   Philly Fed Business Index for March
• 10:00 AM ET                 New Home Sales M/M for January
• 10:00 AM ET                 Wholesale Inventory M/M for January
• 10:30 AM ET                 Weekly EIA Natural Gas Inventory Data

• Earnings After the Close: CURV ECOR ETON FDX GEMI GRWG IDN NYXH PL SCHL YSS

• Goldman Sachs Inaugural Intermountain Health Tech Conference, 3/19-3/20, in Park City, Utah
• Oppenheimer 36th Annual Healthcare MedTech & Services Conference, 3/16-3/19
• Sidoti Smallcap Conference, 3/8-3/19 (virtual)

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