Here Are Thursday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Abercrombie & Fitch, Choice Hotels International, DigitalOcean Holdings, First Solar, LTC Properties, Okta …

Pre-Market Stock Futures:

Futures are trading mixed, with the Nasdaq soaring after a data-filled day on Wall Street that began with Core PCE inflation coming in a little hotter than expected and ended with the much-anticipated results from NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction), which, as usual, came in above expectations, with revenue more than doubling. The major indices closed modestly lower after a slow trading day, with the S&P 500 finishing at 7,675, down 0.02%, while the Nasdaq closed at 26,130, down 0.08%. The Dow Jones Industrials fell 0.21% to 53,463, while the small-cap Russell 2000, still the leading index and up almost 20% in 2026, closed at 3,007, down 0.08%. With the summer winding down, and next week the last vacation week for many before the Labor Day holiday, expect more of the same light volume, and junior traders on the various trade desks around the street.

Treasury Bonds:

Yields were higher across most of the Treasury curve as more criticism of Secretary Bessent’s bond buyback strategy came out. Legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller’s fiery op-ed in the Wall Street Journal argued that Bessent’s intervention was an unneeded effort to manipulate prices rather than fix a real liquidity crisis. The 30-year bond finished the session at 5.17%, while the benchmark 10-year note was last seen at 4.65%. The recent surge in yields has pushed the 30-year mortgage rate to the highest level in over a year. 

Oil and Gas:

Both major oil benchmarks finished Wednesday lower for the third straight day as a pending deal between Oman and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz gained momentum. When the final bell rang, Brent Crude closed at $87.45, down 1.28%, while West Texas Intermediate finished at $81.98, down 0.42%. Natural gas continued its winning ways, closing up 3.47% at $2.87. 

Gold:

After a strong run, some profit-taking showed up in the precious metals complex, as Gold closed Wednesday at $4,590, down 1.49%, while Silver finished the day at $67.93, down 0.90%. Traders cited the hotter inflation data and repositioning ahead of Fed Chairman Warsh’s speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday. 

Crypto:

Cryptocurrency markets cooled and traded mostly flat to lower on Wednesday as Bitcoin faced resistance near the $80,000 mark. The crypto benchmark hovered around $78,000 to $79,000, pulling back slightly after touching a high above $81,000 earlier in the week. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin traded at $79,432, while Ethereum showed strength and was quoted at $2,502.

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports every day to identify fresh investment ideas for investors and traders alike. These daily analyst notes include recommendations on stocks to buy, sell, or avoid, as well as new coverage initiations. Important reminder: No single analyst report should ever be the sole basis for buying or selling a stock.

Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations on Thursday, August 27, 2026.  

Upgrades:

• First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital, which has a $265 target price for the shares.
• LTC Properties (NYSE: LTC) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, with a $55 target.
• Okta (NASDAQ: OKTA) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Bank of America, with a $170 target price.
• Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ: SMTC) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Northland, with a $182 target price.
• Synopsys (NASDAQ: SNPS) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird, which nudged the price target to $560 from $558.

Downgrades:

• Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup, which has a $156 target price for the popular retailer.
• Celsius (NASDAQ: CELH) was cut to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank, with a $35 target price for the stock.
• Primerica (NYSE: PRI) was cut to Hold from Buy at Truist Financial, which slashed the price target to $320 from $370.
• Regions Financial (NYSE: RF) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank, with a $34 target price.
• SmartStop Self Storage REIT (NYSE: SMA) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital, with a $38 target price.

Initiations:

• Choice Hotels International (NYSE: CHH) was initiated with a Neutral at Mizuho, with a $106 target price objective.
• DigitalOcean Holdings (NYSE: DOCN) was started with a Buy rating at Truist Financial, with a $175 target price.
• First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ: FFIN) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Piper Sandler, with a $35 target price.
• Goosehead Insurance (NASDAQ: GSHD) was initiated with a Hold rating at Texas Capital, and has an $80 target price.
• Interactive Brokers Group (NASDAQ: IBKR) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at Raymond James, without a target price.
  
  

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.