1. $AAPL: Morgan Stanley cuts target price to $210 from $215

2. Loop Capital upgraded Wayfair (W) to Hold from Sell with a price target of $50, down from $60. The company's revenue trend is shifting into growth territory in the current quarter, and while growth should bounce around given the volatile comps, the overall trend should be positive, the firm argues.

3. Jefferies upgraded Pfizer (PFE) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $39, up from $38., after the company updated its fiscal 2023 guide, citing COVID revenue by $9B, and announced a cost cut program. The firm says the guidance revision is largely driven by Paxlovid as Comirnaty performance was ahead of buy-side expectations.

4. UBS upgraded UnitedHealth (UNH) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $640, up from $520. The firm believes the "strong" Q3 release from UnitedHealth is a "clearing event that should pave the way for improved valuation for the stock."

5. Stifel upgraded Colgate-Palmolive (CL) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $81, down from $85. The upgrade of Colgate reflects modest multiple expansion on improving fundamentals coupled with an "undemanding" current valuation, the firm analyst tells investors in a research note.

6. Morgan Stanley upgraded Check Point (CHKP) to Equal Weight from Underweight with a price target of $144, up from $118. The firm thinks consensus estimates are now achievable, while the stock's valuation is "undemanding."

7. Bernstein downgraded JD.com (JD) to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $31, down from $55. The firm notes JD.com's shares have been on a downward trajectory for most of this year, and fell sharply after the company signaled a much weaker trajectory for the remainder of 2023 than the Street had expected.

8. Jefferies downgraded Verisk Analytics (VRSK) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $247, down from $265. The stock's valuation now appears full as Verisk's multiple has expanded to a record level above peers and further expansion is unlikely as growth moderates to more normal levels, says Jefferies.

9. BMO Capital downgraded Enphase Energy (ENPH) to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $148, down from $175. The trough in U.S. residential solar demand appears to be deeper than anticipated and the timing of a recovery is uncertain, the firm says.

10. Goldman Sachs downgraded KB Home (KBH) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $48, down from $54. The firm sees less upside to KB verses peers in the current operating environment.

11. RBC Capital downgraded Crown Castle (CCI) to Sector Perform from Outperform with a price target of $100, down from $125. The downgrade reflects a lack of near-term catalysts for the stock, questions around the path of dividend growth relative to net leverage, and uncertainties around the pace of small cell/fiber growth, the firm says.

12. Citi initiated coverage of Instacart (CART) with a Buy rating and $34 price target. The firm says improving order efficiencies, growth of its higher-margin advertising business, and the launch of new ad products should lead to margin expansion for Instacart. Barclays, JPMorgan, JMP Securities, Oppenheimer, Baird, Stifel, Piper Sandler, and Goldman Sachs started the name with Buy-equivalent ratings. Meanwhile, BofA and Wedbush initiated Instacart with Neutral-equivalent ratings.

13. Truist initiated coverage of Klaviyo (KVYO) with a Buy rating and $42 price target. The firm believes platform differentiation along with a proven go-to-market engine with emerging upside drivers could help the company maintain "best-in-class" sales growth "while impressively scaling profits and cash flow." Piper Sandler, Baird, William Blair, TD Cowen, Needham, Mizuho, and Canaccord started the name with Buy-equivalent ratings. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanely, Citi, Barclays, and Goldman Sachs initiated the stock with Neutral-equivalent ratings.

14. Leerink initiated coverage of DexCom (DXCM) with an Outperform rating and $110 price target. Recent volatility in the shares has been largely driven by perceived headwinds to growth from broader GLP-1 adoption, but the firm's work suggests this will have limited impact on DexCom's ability to sustain double-digit growth over the intermediate term.

15. Leerink initiated coverage of Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) with an Outperform rating and $342 price target. Leerink continues see an attractive setup for Intuitive Surgical's shares, with its analysis suggesting the total impact from declining bariatric procedure growth on Intuitive Surgical's total revenue is unlikely to surpass 5% even in the most extreme circumstances, while new market entrants on the horizon could ultimately help accelerate the overall growth of the surgical robotics market without capturing significant share from it. The firm also started coverage of Insulet (PODD), Vericel (VCEL), ShockWave (SWAV), Procept BioRobotics (PRCT), Axonics (AXNX), and AxoGen (AXGN) with Outperform ratings.

16. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage of Nextracker (NXT) with a Buy rating and $43 fair value estimate. Nextracker is the "leading provider" of tracking hardware for utility-scale PV developments and is well positioned within the U.S., where the firm expects the company to be a beneficiary of IRA tax credits both on an indirect and direct basis.

1. Pfizer (PFE) amended its U.S. supply agreement for Paxlovid, launched a cost realignment program, and cut its earnings and revenue guidance for FY23 due to its COVID products

2. Starboard Value has built a stake in News Corp. (NWSA) and plans to seek changes, WSJ reports

3. Market tracker Counterpoint says Apple (AAPL) iPhone 15 off to disappointing start in China, Bloomberg reports

4. Rite Aid (RAD) named Jeffrey Stein CEO and initiated a voluntary court-supervised bankruptcy process under Chapter 11

5. The EU has delayed approval of Novavax's (NVAX) revised COVID-19 vaccine, FT reports

6. Prothena (PRTA) has been speaking to advisors as it gets ready to explore strategic options that may include a sale or partnership, Bloomberg reports

7. Activist investor Engine Capital said in its Q3 letter to investors that MRC Global (MRC) is "deeply undervalued" and is urging the company to consider exploring a sale, Bloomberg says

8. The U.S. FTC remains focused on its appeal opposing Microsoft's (MSFT) $68.7B Activision (ATVI) acquisition and will "assess" the cloud gaming deal with Ubisoft (UBSFY), Reuters reports

9. Volkswagen brand's (VWAGY) cost-cutting plan is running behind schedule, Reuters says

10. Activist Trian targets insurer Allstate (ALL), Reuters reports

11. E2open (ETWO) rises after Bloomberg reported Elliott Investment Management is considering making a proposal to take the company private

12. Consolidated Communications (CNSL) gains after announcing it will be acquired by Searchlight Capital Partners and British Columbia Investment in an all-cash transaction with a value of approximately $3.1B

13. Indie Semiconductor (INDI) higher after providing guidance for Q3

14. Ambrx Biopharma (AMAM) falls after reporting safety and efficacy data from its Phase 1/2 APEX-01 trial

15. FuelCell (FCEL) declines after filing to sell common stock

16. Charles Schwab (SCHW) reported Q3 results, with CEO Bettinger commenting that in "a very challenging economic and geopolitical backdrop, investors continued turning to Schwab as a trusted partner and a wealth management leader"

17. Vista Outdoor (VSTO) cut its FY24 outlook

18. Alphatec (ATEC) provided guidance for Q3 and raised its FY23 revenue view

19. CVS (CVS) reaffirmed its FY23 guidance

20. New Fortress Energy (NFE) provided FY23 and FY24 adjusted EBITDA guidance

Stocks rose while bonds fell as diplomatic efforts were made to prevent the Israel-Hamas conflict from escalating into a regional conflict. Following last week's rally, oil prices fell.

The S&P 500 gained 1.1%, as traders braced for a slew of earnings reports. Ten-year Treasury yields rose nine basis points to 4.71%. The dollar has weakened. Bitcoin lost 10% of its value after BlackRock said its application for an exchange-traded fund that invests directly in cryptocurrency is still being reviewed. The Israeli shekel has reached an eight-year low.

Wall Street's safe haven bid has waned, with President Joe Biden considering a trip to Israel as part of an effort to keep the war from spreading. After talks with Arab governments, Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to Israel to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with the leaders of Egypt, Syria, Iran, and the Palestinian Authority, and the Kremlin stated that there was "unanimous agreement" on the need for a cease-fire. He spoke with Netanyahu separately.

New Zealand CPI QoQ Actual 1.8% (Forecast 1.9%, Previous 1.1%)

U.S. stocks climbed Monday, reflecting investors’ hopes that the Israel-Hamas conflict wouldn’t have a major impact on the global economy.

While conditions remained tense in the Middle East, investors expressed some relief that the conflict had yet to escalate into an even worse geopolitical crisis. Investors had piled into safer assets on Friday as a hedge against unexpected shocks over the weekend.

At the other end of the reversal, Monday was more challenging for assets such as gold and U.S. Treasurys, which had rallied Friday.

One concern for investors is that an anticipated Israeli ground invasion of Gaza, aimed at destroying Hamas, might draw in Hamas ally Iran, leading to stricter sanctions on Iran oil exports and higher energy prices.

Still, the conflict hasn’t yet led to a big jump in oil prices. Brent crude, the global benchmark, slumped 1.4% to $89.65 a barrel Monday.

“Today is kind of an unwinding of [the] flight-to-safety trade late last week,” said Will Compernolle, macro strategist at FHN Financial. Even so, he added, “the war in Israel is obviously a huge new risk with a ton of potential outcomes.”

Monday’s gains were spread out among stocks, with no sector in the S&P 500 rising less than 0.7%.

Many of the stocks at the bottom of the market’s leaderboard have something in common: They are shares of consumer-oriented companies.
Although the U.S. economy generally appears to be humming along, companies across the retail spectrum have suggested consumers are starting to exercise more caution with their purchases. The latest fall in the shares also coincides with a rapid rise in Treasury yields, which reduces the appeal of the staples stocks in particular because they are often seen as dividend plays.