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What has Wall Street been buzzing about this week? Here are the top 5 buy calls and the top 5 sell calls made by Wall Street's best analysts during the trading week of Oct. 7-11, 2024. First, here are the top 5 buy calls of the week.

1. Netflix Upgraded to Overweight at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler upgraded Netflix (NFLX) to Overweight from Neutral with a price target of $800, up from $650, as it believes Netflix "is a clear leader in streaming." The firm's prior Neutral stance was centered around valuation, but now it appreciates "the company is expensive for a reason." Moving forward, there are still levers to be pulled by Netflix in the ads-free business, particularly around pricing, "while the ads-tier has been largely de-risked heading into next year," Piper tells investors in a research note.

The firm believes consensus margins could also prove to be conservative in 2025 and 2026 based on the incremental margins over the last few quarters. It sees "multiple scenarios to positive estimate revisions," and says that in a potentially weaker macro environment, Netflix's subscription-based model "becomes even more attractive."

2. Home Depot Upgraded to Buy at Loop Capital

Loop Capital upgraded Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) to Buy from Hold with price targets of $460 and $300, up from $360 and $250, respectively. The firm says recent store checks indicate the home improvement retail demand has bottomed.

The hurricanes may disrupt current quarter sales, but investors will likely look beyond this to a future demand lift, Loop tells investors in a research note. The firm is "pleased" with the quick resolution to the port strike.

3. Truist "More Optimistic" on Nike, Upgrades to Buy 

Truist upgraded Nike (NKE) to Buy from Hold with a price target of $97, up from $83. The firm notes it has been cautious on Nike since Fall of 2023 and still views a turnaround process as long and uncertain, but adds that it is now "more optimistic" as investor expectations finally seem to accurately reflect this reality.

Although a fundamental recovery remains a long-term prospect, with a team of company vets back at the helm, Truist thinks Nike is "moving in the right direction," and thinks some near-term wins from the fresh team should be enough to "show investors there are better times ahead," the firm said

4. Reddit Initiated With a Buy at Jefferies

Jefferies initiated coverage of Reddit (RDDT) with a Buy rating and a $90 price target. The firm estimates the company's EBITDA more than doubles in the next two years to $450 million, 12% above the 2026 consensus, driven by "peer-high" growth in users and a nascent opportunity to close the monetization gap to peers.

Jefferies also anticipates additional high-margin data licensing deals as expanding use-cases for generative artificial intelligence increase the value of Reddit's database of contextual content.

5. CVS Health Upgraded to Overweight at Barclays

Barclays upgraded CVS Health (CVS) to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $82, up from $63. CVS went "three-for-three" in important Medicare releases over the past two weeks, which is a positive first step to unlocking significant value at Aetna, the firm tells investors in a research note.

Barclays now has higher conviction in the upper end of the company's 2025 Medicare margin improvement. It also highlights CVS Health's $2 billion in cost savings measures and "potential upside" from CostVantage.

Next, here are the top 5 sell calls of the week.

1. Netflix Downgraded to Underweight at Barclays

Barclays downgraded Netflix to Underweight from Equal Weight with an unchanged price target of $550. Netflix's "premium valuation" is predicated on revenue growth being at least in the low-double-digits "for some time," the firm tells investors in a research note. Barclays thinks this will get more difficult and that the company's growth algorithm "will come with tradeoffs."

Even if Netflix gets to its revenue goal, the stock's valuation "implicitly prices in" more than a doubling of the subscriber base from present levels, "which seems unrealistic," contends the firm.

2. BTIG Downgrades American Express to Sell on "Unachievable" Expectations

BTIG downgraded American Express (AXP) to Sell from Neutral with a $230 price target. The downgrade is based on two factors: the company's fundamentals are more likely to get worse than better, yet expectations for rapid improvement continue to climb, the firm tells investors in a research note. BTIG sees greater risk of worsening rather than improvement in key American Express metrics, like billed business and revenue growth, net interest income, and credit trends.

The macro environment will continue to drive a deceleration in American Express's billed business as it is likely to get worse, even in a "soft landing," contends BTIG. The firm also thinks the company's growth in Gen-Z is likely to decline further, especially in non-artificial intelligence tech employment.

It believes "unachievable 2025 expectations are baked into the share price." American Express will miss 2025 earnings and revenue growth these expectations, BTIG contends.

3. Skyworks Downgraded to Underweight at Barclays 

Barclays downgraded Skyworks (SWKS) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $87, down from $115. The firm rolled out new content assumptions for the iPhone SE4 and the iPhone 17, and it assumes a more modest unit ramp next year. Barclays believes handset expectations are "out of touch." For Skyworks, the firm says lower units and content headwinds will make the upcoming six months challenging.

4. Star Bulk Carriers Downgraded to Sell at DNB Markets

DNB Markets downgraded Star Bulk Carriers (SBLK) to Sell from Hold with a price target of $19.30, down from $21. The firm believes the dry bulk market has "topped out for the foreseeable future" as fundamental demand headwinds, most notably in China, should start to be reflected in rates.

It keeps a "considerably softer outlook" for 2025 and expects consensus estimates to come down. DNB says the "fleeting optimism" on Chinese stimulus driving shipping demand does little to alter its negative view.

5. FactSet Downgraded to Sell at Redburn Atlantic

Redburn Atlantic downgraded FactSet (FDS) to Sell from Neutral with a price target of $380, down from $420. The company "is in a tricky spot," the firm tells investors in a research note. Despite investments, FactSet's organic sales growth has halved in the past 12 months, and its productivity screens at the bottom end of the peer group, Redburn says. The firm believes FactSet "needs a new strategy to reinvigorate growth."

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