(This is CNBC Pro’s live coverage of Thursday’s analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) A pharmacy operator and an industrial stock were among the stocks being talked by analysts on Thursday. Barclays upgraded CVS to overweight from equal weight, calling for 24% upside. Meanwhile, JPMorgan lowered its rating on Honeywell International to neutral from overweight. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 5:50 a.m.: Barclays upgrades CVS, sees 24% upside Barclays sees significant upside ahead for shares of CVS . The bank upgraded the pharmaceutical stock to overweight from equal weight. Analyst Andrew Mok accompanied the rating change by lifting his price target to $82 from $63. CVS has slipped 16% this year, but Mok’s target implies that shares could rally a 24% from Wednesday’s close. CVS YTD mountain CVS year to date The analyst thinks that a “compelling margin recovery opportunity” exists for the stock due to a few catalysts, including early signs of a Medicare margin recovery. “CVS went three-for-three in important Medicare releases over the past two weeks (plan exits, supplemental benefits, and star scores), which is a positive first step toward a multi-year Medicare margin recovery to unlock significant value at Aetna,” he wrote. Mok added that most consensus estimates underappreciate the pace of this recovery, especially given the company’s significant cost-savings initiatives which could unlock around $2 billion in value. The analyst pointed out that CVS currently trades at a discount to peer Cigna. “We think the EPS baseline has stabilized, which sets the stage for earnings acceleration in its most valuable segment (Aetna),” he wrote. — Lisa Kailai Han 5:50 a.m.: JPMorgan downgrades Honeywell Don’t expect much from Honeywell in the near future, according to JPMorgan. Analyst Stephen Tusa downgraded the industrial giant to neutral from overweight. To be sure, he did raise his price target by $10 to $235, implying upside of nearly 10%. “We like the defensive growth profile of the company with extended visibility tied to the long cycle backlog and a renewed focus on growth under the new CEO, and we applaud action here, with a constructive top line outlook for ’25,” Tusa wrote. “However, our concern is that a refreshed focus on organic growth, which we expect to pay off somewhat in 2025, may not fall to the bottom line as expected, with a trade-off that is balanced against margins,” he added. “In addition, inorganically, we had thought the company had 3% upside from acquisition accretion in ’25 setting up for a beat, but with divestitures now taking center stage, it appears as though while portfolio management will likely mix the company to higher quality metrics, the dilution is a cost that breaks the near term consensus earnings curve,” Tusa said. The Dow Jones Industrial Average member fell 0.8% in the premarket after the downgrade. Year to date, it’s up just 2%. HON YTD mountain HON in 2024 — Fred Imbert
