Charter upgraded, Cisco downgraded: Wall Street’s top analyst calls

The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today’s research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.

Top 5 Upgrades:

• Oppenheimer upgraded Charter (CHTR) to Outperform from Perform with a $500 price target after the company announced it is acquiring Cox Communications at a purchase price that values the latter at $34.5B. 
• UBS upgraded Caterpillar (CAT) to Neutral from Sell with a price target of $357, up from $272. The firm cites the better-than-expected progress and outcomes of trade discussions with China for the upgrade. 
• HSBC upgraded Carnival (CCL) to Hold from Reduce with a price target of $24, up from $14. The company’s booking trends have been resilient despite macro-economic concerns, with Carnival in a “strong booked position,” the firm tells investors in a research note. 
• JPMorgan upgraded Pentair (PNR) to Overweight from Neutral with a price target of $113, up from $90. Following the U.S. tariff de-escalation with China, the firm believes Pentair’s volume expectations for the second half of 2025 are likely too conservative. 
• BofA upgraded Paysafe (PSFE) to Neutral from Underperform with a price target of $14.30, down from $16, with shares down about 23% since Q1 results were reported on May 13, which the firm sees as likely due to concerns around the second half acceleration embedded in fiscal year guidance in an uncertain macro environment. 

Top 5 Downgrades:

• New Street downgraded Cisco (CSCO) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $70, down from $75, post the fiscal Q3 report. The firm believes the recovery thesis has played out and now prefers to wait for a better entry point.
• B. Riley downgraded National CineMedia (NCMI) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $6, down from $8.50, following a transfer of coverage.
• Northland downgraded SolarEdge (SEDG) to Underperform from Market Perform with an unchanged price target of $15.50. Shares are “up a lot” since April 25 with the company amid a turnaround in a difficult macro environment with uncertainty in U.S. tax policy as well as tariff uncertainty, notes the firm. 
• Goldman Sachs downgraded Globant (GLOB) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $120, down from $225, following Q1 results and guidance that were “significantly weaker than expected.” Piper Sandler also downgraded Globant to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $116, down from $154.
• Barclays downgraded Foot Locker (FL) to Equal Weight from Overweight with a price target of $24, up from $14, after the company reached an agreement to be acquired by Dick’s Sporting (DKS) for $24 per share. Gordon Haskett also downgraded Foot Locker to Hold from Accumulate, and Dick’s Sporting to Reduce from Buy. 

Top 5 Initiations:

• Susquehanna initiated coverage of Astera Labs (ALAB) with a Neutral rating and $80 price target. The firm says consistent execution in increasing content, diversifying revenue, and scaling expenditures could potentially drive material upside in the shares, though it prefers to be on the “conservative side.”
• Jefferies initiated coverage of MasTec (MTZ) with a Buy rating and $188 price target. The firm is “bullish” on growth and margin expansion given the company’s scale across the clean energy, utility infrastructure, transmission, communications, and energy pipeline segments along with strategic customer partnerships.
• Citi resumed coverage of Uniti Group (UNIT) with a Neutral rating and $5.30 price target. The Uniti and Windstream merger has a very high likelihood of getting done, the firm tells investors in a research note. 
• Longbow initiated coverage of HNI Corporation (HNI) with a Buy rating and $70 price target. The firm says the company’s 2023 acquisition of a key workplace furnishings competitor is providing a “strong synergies opportunity” that is coinciding with HNI’s opening of a large Mexican plant. 
• Morgan Stanley resumed coverage of Royalty Pharma (RPRX) with an Overweight rating and $51 price target. The firm cites se the company’s diversified portfolio and insulation from potential tariffs, coupled with a growth profile above the peer average, as positives.