Here Are Thursday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: AT&T, Applied Digital, Autodesk, Duke Energy, Exxon Mobil, JPMorgan Chase & Company, Live Nation Entertainment, and More

Lee JacksonThu, July 23, 2026 at 11:54 AM UTC

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Rising oil prices pushed Brent Crude to $94 and lifted the 10-year Treasury yield to 4.66%, reigniting inflation fears across markets.

JPMorgan (JPM) was upgraded to Buy at Deutsche Bank with a $375 target, while AT&T (T) was raised to Outperform at Wolfe Research.

Southern Company (SO) was cut to Underweight at KeyBanc, and Pegasystems (PEGA) saw its target slashed from $55 to $25 at Loop Capital.

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Pre-Market Stock Futures:

Futures are trading lower as more big earnings excitement ran into rising oil prices and geopolitical worries. When the final bell rang on Wednesday, all of the major indices finished the day lower, except the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which essientially closed flat at 52,239. The other three indices closed lower, with the small-cap Russell 2000 taking the biggest hit, closing down 1% at 2,957. At the same time, the tech-heavy Nasdaq finished the session at 25,690, down 0.57%. The S&P 500 closed the day at 7,498, down just 0.14%. The big news after the close was the second-quarter earnings from technology giant Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL), and while they blew past analysts' estimates, the shares were under pressure in the after-market, and are trading lower this morning in the pre-market action.

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Treasury Bonds:

The song remains the same in the Treasury complex, as yields were higher across the entire curve once again, and the same reasons for the weakness persist. Higher oil prices are fueling worries about a resurgence of inflation, which took a summer holiday in June and looks set to return when the July inflation numbers come out in the month. The 30-year long bond closed the session at 5.15%, while the ten-year note closed at 4.66%. BTIG pointed out yesterday that 4.65% was a key area for the benchmark bond, and a "decisive close above that level could trigger a move higher". Investors looking to buy the 10-year should focus on the 4.75% level.

Oil and Gas:

In what is becoming a daily story, oil prices moved higher once again. Despite assurances from Secretary of State Rubio that tankers will be able to pass, buyers continue to launch bullish energy bets. When the dust settled on Wednesday, Brent Crude was up 3.05% at $93.79, while West Texas Intermediate finished the day at $86.44, higher by 2.49%. Natural gas joined in, and was last seen at $2.95, up 2.79%.

Gold:

Geopolitical worries and rising yields were all it took to keep precious metals on their recent upward trend, where prices hit a 2-week high on Wednesday. Some traders pointed to next week's meeting of the Federal Reserve governors and said that some of the move higher is positioning ahead of it. Gold closed Wednesday's session at $4,134, up 1.38%, while Silver closed at $59.62, up 1.68%.

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Crypto:

The global cryptocurrency market ended slightly lower on Wednesday, with total market capitalization holding steady around $2.24 trillion. Bitcoin traded near $65,900 after climbing to an intraday high of $67,000 earlier in the session. The mild pullback appeared driven mainly by investors locking in profits, alongside a broader shift toward safe-haven assets. Rising crude oil prices and escalating tensions in the Middle East added to the cautious sentiment across risk assets. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin was trading at $65,520, while Ethereum was quoted at $1,926.

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. I would like to remind you that 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 seen on Thursday, July 23, 2026.

Upgrades: -

Ameren (NYSE: AEE) was upgraded to Overweight from Sector Weight at KeryBanc, with a $122 target price.

AT&T (NYSE: T) was upgraded to Outperform from Peer Perform at Wolfe Research, with a $29 target price.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) was raised to Overweight from Sector Weight at KeyBanc, with a $139 target price objective.

JPMorgan Chase & Company (NYSE: JPM) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, which moved the target price to $375 from $345.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ: VRSK) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies, which raised the target price on the shares to $235 from $192.

Downgrades: -

Pegasystems (NASDAQ: PEGA) was downgraded to Loop Capital, which slashed the target price to $25 from $55.

PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE: PNC) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank, with a $265 price target.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ: NTRS) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital, with a $178 target price.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NYSE: NCLH) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Truist Financial, with a $20 target price.

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) was cut to Underweight from Sector Weight at KeyBanc, with a $79 target price.

Initiations: -

Applied Digital (NASDAQ: APLD) was initiated with an Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley, with a $36.50 target price.

Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) was initiated with a Buy rating at Guggenheim, with a $245 target price.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was assumed with a Neutral rating at Piper Sandler, which has a $158 target for the integrated oil giant.

LiveNation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) was initiated with a Buy rating at BTIG, with a $215 target price.

Tyler Technologies (NYSE: TYL) was started with a Buy rating at Guggenheim, which has a $440 target price for the stock.

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Source: “AOL Money”