Premarket movers
Gainers
Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), the machinery maker generally regarded as a barometer for the American industrial sector, reported a fourth-quarter adjusted per-share profit that exceeded forecasts, with higher pricing helping to offset a drop in sales volume. The company’s shares soared during premarket dealmaking in the United States.
Catalent (NYSE:CTLT) shares rose after Novo Nordisk’s parent, Novo Holdings, agreed to buy the contract pharmaceutical for $11.5 billion.
Estee Lauder (NYSE:EL) stock soared after the beauty goods company announced intentions to slash up to 3,000 jobs as part of a larger restructuring effort.
Everbridge (NASDAQ:EVBG) shares soared after the software company said that it would be acquired by Thoma Bravo, a private equity firm in the United States, in an all-cash transaction valued at around $1.5 billion.
Haynes International (NASDAQ:HAYN) rose after the corrosion-resistant alloy producer agreed to be acquired by Spanish steelmaker Acerinox.
Losers
Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) stock fell after the firm reported a lower-than-expected first-quarter profit and cut its year adjusted earnings per share estimate.
Cano Health (NYSE:CANO) plunged substantially after the primary care provider declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy late Sunday.
Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares fell in premarket trade in the United States on Monday, as the struggling planemaker warned that a new issue in some of its 737 fuselages could cause “near-term” delivery delays.
McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) announced fourth-quarter sales growth that fell short of Wall Street expectations as Middle East instability hampered its international operations. However, the burger chain forecasted that its operating margin will be in the “mid- to high-40%” range in 2024, meaning an increase over the previous year’s mark of 45.7% at the upper end of the guideline.
Upgrades
Cigna Labeled “Overweight” in Latest Analyst Picks: Healthcare Giant Cigna Gains Overweight Rating – Analysts Express Confidence in Company’s Growth Potential.
Cigna upgraded two corporations after Q4 beat.
After beating Q4 earnings and revising its full-year profit projection, Cigna (NYSE:CI) received two analyst upgrades today, causing its stock price to rise 5% on Friday.
RBC Capital upgraded Cigna to Outperform from Sector Perform and boosted its price objective to $354.00 from $327.00.
Cigna was raised to Overweight from Neutral by Cantor Fitzgerald, with a $372.00 price objective up from $334.00. The firm highlighted Cigna’s solid posture for 2025/2026 earnings projection growth, driven by Evernorth, and its lowest-risk exposure to Medicare uncertainty and an insurance underwriting cycle.
Global Payments is upgraded before Q4 earnings.
Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) was upgraded to Outperform from In Line by Evercore ISI, raising the price target from $129.00 to $185.00 before the Q4/23 earnings announcement on Feb 14.
The analysts expect an improved financial performance in 2024 due to better comparability after the NetSpend and Gaming divestitures, cost synergies from EVOP, and a strategy focus on high-growth, tech-enabled products.
These variables should increase 2024 and 2025 adjusted EPS consensus estimates and forward multiples due to reduced capital intensity and increased FCF conversion, analysts say.
Two more enhancements
TD Cowen raised SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW) to Outperform from Market Perform with a $68.00 price target. SkyWest’s stock price rose 8% on Friday after its Q4 earnings last week.
SkyWest had a good 4Q23. Company pilot attrition is down and block hour production is up. Its SkyWest Charters division is also increasing charter revenue. They invested in Contour, a small airline with ~30 aircraft, 200 pilots, and an interline agreement with American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL).
After reporting its Q4 results and raising its quarterly dividend by 5.6%, Guggenheim upgraded CMS Energy (NYSE:CMS) to Buy from Neutral with a price objective of $64.00 (from $60.00).
Downgrades
Charter Communications downgraded twice after Q4 miss: 4 major analyst cuts
Charter Communications eliminated two firms following Q4 shortfall.
After its Q4 shortfall last week, Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) was downgraded by two Wall Street companies and dropped more than 16% on Friday.
Wells Fargo downgraded Charter Communications to Equal Weight from Overweight and lowered its price objective to $340.00 from $460.00.
JPMorgan lowered the business to Neutral from Overweight with a $370.00 price target (from $445.00).
Take-Two Interactive neutralized
Before the Q3/24 results announcement on Feb. 8, MoffettNathanson downgraded Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ:TTWO) to Neutral from Buy and lowered the price target to $167.00 from $169.00.
Raymond James downgrades Tractor Supply to Outperform
Raymond James lowered Tractor Supply (NASDAQ:TSCO) to Outperform from Strong Buy and set a $250.00 price objective.
JPMorgan downgrades GlobalFoundries
After JPMorgan downgraded GlobalFoundries (NASDAQ:GFS) to Neutral from Overweight and lowered its price objective to $56.00 from $65.00, shares slid more than 2% pre-market.
Weekly Earnings Calendar
Monday
Allegiant (ALGT), Caterpillar (CAT), Chegg (CHGG), Estée Lauder (EL), McDonald’s (MCD), Palantir (PLTR), Tyson (TSN)
Tuesday
Amgen (AMGN), Chipotle (CMG), e.l.f. Beauty (ELF ), Eli Lilly (LLY), Spotify (SPOT), Fiserv (FI), Ford (F), Hertz (HTZ), BP (BP), Snap (SNAP), Toyota (TM)
Wednesday
Alibaba (BABA), Arm Holdings (ARM), CVS (CVS), Mattel (MAT), Paycom (PAYC), Paypal (PYPL), Roblox (RBLX), Uber (UBER), Walt Disney (DIS), Wynn Resorts (WYNN)
Thursday
Affirm (AFRM), Aurora Cannabis (ACB), Bill.com (BILL), ConocoPhillips (COP), Expedia (EXPE), Hershey (HSY), Pinterest (PINS), Spirit (SAVE), Take-Two Interactive (TTWO)
Friday
Canopy Growth (CGC), Pepsi (PEP)
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