Thursday, July 23 delivered a defensive tilt to the week's upgrade slate, with Buy calls on a data-analytics leader, a telecom heavyweight, a regulated utility, and fresh Buy coverage on an AI power-infrastructure leader and a live-entertainment franchise. Q2 earnings continue heavy this week across financials, industrials, and communications. The macro backdrop remains Chair Kevin Warsh's June 17 FOMC hold at 3.50%–3.75% and a CME FedWatch reading pricing roughly an 80% probability of zero rate cuts through year-end 2026. Five names drew fresh Buy signals for Friday, July 24.
Verisk Analytics (VRSK) — Jefferies calls the Q1 report a trough with a $43 target hike
Verisk Analytics is a specialty data-and-analytics provider serving the property and casualty insurance industry, delivering underwriting, claims, catastrophe, and anti-fraud analytics to nearly every major U.S. insurer. On July 23, Jefferies analyst Surinder Thind upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy and lifted his target from $192 to $235 — a $43 hike — arguing the Q1 report "likely marks a trough," with organic growth improving to 5% year-over-year in Q2 and accelerating in H2 2026. The call joins JP Morgan's Andrew Steinerman at Overweight $230 and Wells Fargo's Jason Haas at Overweight $223.
Shares traded at $190.02 midday July 23, down 1.17%, with a market cap of $24.9 billion and a trailing P/E of 26.25. Trailing EPS was $7.24 and the dividend yield is roughly 1%. The 52-week range is $155.94 to $300.94. The consensus rating is Buy, with 6 of 11 analysts bullish (54.5%), an average target of $233.82, a median of $230, a high of $275, and a low of $190.
Risks: P&C insurance IT spending can slow when carriers face underwriting losses; new-product attach rates have been uneven; the divested financial-services and energy units removed growth optionality; and Rothschild & Co's Russell Quelch holds Sell at $220, cautious on core analytics run-rate.
AT&T (T) — Wolfe Research upgrades the telecom on fiber and wireless margins
AT&T is one of the two largest U.S. wireless carriers, offering postpaid and prepaid mobility alongside a rapidly expanding fiber footprint, enterprise networking, and AT&T Mexico operations. On July 23, Wolfe Research analyst Peter Supino upgraded the stock from Peer Perform to Outperform with a $29 price target, citing durable fiber-margin expansion and improving postpaid net-add profitability. The call joins Morgan Stanley's Simon Flannery at Overweight $27 (raised from $25 the same day) and KeyBanc's Brandon Nispel at Overweight $36, the Street high.
Shares traded at $22.99 midday July 23, down 0.22%, with a market cap of $159.7 billion and a trailing P/E of 10.59. Trailing EPS was $2.17 and the dividend yield is roughly 5%. The 52-week range is $19.89 to $29.79. The consensus rating is Buy, with 7 of 12 analysts bullish (58.3%), an average target of $28.56, a median of $29.12, a high of $36, and a low of $20.
Risks: Cable and fixed-wireless competition pressures long-term ARPU; Latin American FX volatility affects results; deleveraging depends on steady FCF conversion; and TD Cowen's Gregory Williams holds Hold at $33, cautious on wireless promotional intensity.
Duke Energy (DUK) — KeyBanc turns constructive on the Carolinas-anchored utility
Duke Energy is one of the largest U.S. regulated electric utilities, serving roughly 8.5 million retail customers across the Carolinas, Florida, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, with natural-gas distribution and regulated renewables assets. On July 23, KeyBanc analyst Mike Guo upgraded the stock from Sector Weight to Overweight with a $139 price target, citing rate-base growth visibility and constructive regulatory outcomes in the Carolinas. The call joins Truist Securities' Richard Sunderland at Buy $138 and JP Morgan's Jeremy Tonet at Neutral $141.
Shares traded at $128.95 midday July 23, up 0.78%, with a market cap of $100.5 billion and a trailing P/E of 19.87. Trailing EPS was $6.49 and the dividend yield is roughly 3%. The 52-week range is $113.90 to $134.49. The consensus rating is Buy, with 5 of 11 analysts bullish (45.5%), an average target of $135.82, a median of $135, a high of $141, and a low of $126.
Risks: Storm-restoration costs and hurricane exposure in the Carolinas and Florida pressure quarterly earnings; higher rates raise refinancing costs on a large regulated debt stack; data-center load growth requires timely capex approval from state regulators; and Wells Fargo's Shahriar Pourreza holds Equal-Weight at $135, in line with the current share price.
Vertiv Holdings (VRT) — KeyBanc initiates the AI power-infrastructure leader at Overweight
Vertiv Holdings is a leading global provider of critical digital infrastructure and power management for data centers, with a portfolio spanning liquid cooling, uninterruptible power supplies, thermal management, and rack-level power — positioning it at the center of the AI capex build. On July 23, KeyBanc initiated coverage at Overweight with a $360 price target, joining a heavily bullish Street. Recent calls include RBC Capital's Deane Dray at Outperform $418, the Street high, and Morgan Stanley's Chris Snyder at Overweight $350.
Shares traded at $303.28 midday July 23, up 0.70%, with a market cap of $116.5 billion and a trailing P/E of 64.25. Trailing EPS was $4.72 and the company pays no meaningful dividend. The 52-week range is $118.70 to $379.94. The consensus rating is Strong Buy, with 11 of 12 analysts bullish (91.7%), an average target of $367.50, a median of $370, a high of $440, and a low of $260.
Risks: Hyperscaler capex cycles are historically volatile and can swing quarterly bookings; a slowing AI training buildout would compress liquid-cooling growth; component supply constraints can pressure margins; and JP Morgan's Stephen Tusa holds Neutral, an outlier against the bullish consensus.
Live Nation Entertainment (LYV) — BTIG initiates the concert-promotion leader at Buy
Live Nation Entertainment is the dominant global concert-promotion and live-events operator, running Ticketmaster ticketing, artist management through Roc Nation and Maverick, and hundreds of owned and operated venues, festivals, and sponsorships worldwide. On July 23, BTIG initiated coverage at Buy with a $215 price target, arguing the company "is at the center of the secular growth story unfolding in live events." The call joins JP Morgan's David Karnovsky at Overweight $205 and Citizens' Matthew Condon at Market Outperform $215.
Shares traded at $176.64 midday July 23, down 0.72%, with a market cap of $41.1 billion and a company still unprofitable, so a trailing P/E is not meaningful. Trailing EPS was negative $1.77 and the company pays no dividend. The 52-week range is $125.34 to $188. The consensus rating is Strong Buy, with 11 of 13 analysts bullish (84.6%), an average target of $195.15, a median of $198, a high of $222, and a low of $155.
Risks: Ongoing DOJ antitrust litigation could force structural changes to Ticketmaster; discretionary concert spending is sensitive to consumer confidence; touring cycles create quarterly volatility; and Susquehanna's Joseph Stauff downgraded to Neutral at $186 on July 21, cautious on valuation.
Found this helpful? Share it with others.