Several companies made headlines before the bell, with Shockwave Medical rising 1.6% after Johnson & Johnson announced plans to acquire the company for $12.5 billion. This move would expand J & J’s portfolio of cardiovascular disease treatment devices. Krispy Kreme saw its shares surge 5% after Piper Sandler upgraded the stock to overweight from neutral, noting a major growth opportunity following a partnership with McDonald’s. Cinemark also experienced a 5% increase in its stock price after a double upgrade to overweight from underweight at Wells Fargo, citing rising demand and a positive outlook for the movie industry.
On the flip side, Altice USA’s stock dropped nearly 6% after Wells Fargo downgraded the cable television firm to underweight due to skepticism about its M & A prospects. Ollie’s shares rose over 2% following an upgrade to buy from hold by Loop Capital, highlighting its cheap valuation compared to peers and expansion potential. Public Storage also saw a nearly 1% increase after Wells Fargo upgraded its rating to overweight, listing the stock as its top idea in storage, noting industry-leading growth metrics and solid positioning in an uncertain housing market.
In other news, Scotts Miracle-Gro slipped 0.8% after a downgrade by Truist to hold from buy, citing limited catalysts for a move higher. Fox Corporation Class A rose 1% following an upgrade to buy from neutral at Seaport Research, attributing the move to strong ad spending, the growth of its Tubi service, ratings momentum, and a healthy balance sheet. Western Digital, a semiconductor stock, increased nearly 3.5% after an upgrade to buy from neutral by Rosenblatt Securities, which expects the company to benefit from rising prices for a key memory chip.
Shares of Snowflake gained 1.4% after Rosenblatt Securities upgraded the cloud computing company to buy from neutral, driven by healthy customer interest. Agilent Technologies, a life sciences applications company, saw a more than 1% increase following an upgrade to buy from hold at Stifel, with analyst Daniel Arias noting strong instrument demand and an attractive valuation as factors that could make the stock more compelling to investors.Overall, these companies experienced a mix of upgrades, downgrades, and stock price movements based on analyst insights and market trends impacting their respective industries.
