The final trading day before the July 4 holiday weekend arrives with U.S. equities off a record-setting first half and a hawkish policy backdrop in place. Chair Kevin Warsh's June 17 FOMC left rates at 3.50%–3.75% and removed the easing bias, and CME FedWatch shows roughly an 80% probability of zero cuts in 2026. July 1 delivered a heavy analyst tape with fresh upgrades across cybersecurity, semi capital equipment, consumer internet, transports, and media. All five names below picked up concrete Buy calls on July 1.
Check Point Software (CHKP) — Guggenheim sees 43% upside
Check Point Software is a legacy Israeli cybersecurity vendor whose platform spans network, cloud, and endpoint security. On July 1, Guggenheim upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy and introduced a $188 DCF-based price target implying "43% upside from current prices." Stephens' Todd Weller has held Overweight $240, BMO's Keith Bachman is at Outperform $135, and Citigroup's Fatima Boolani and UBS's Roger Boyd sit at Neutral $125 and $130.
Shares traded at $136.25 on July 1, up 3.67%, with a market cap of $14.2 billion and a trailing P/E of 11.16. The 52-week range is $112.23 to $232.07. The consensus rating is Buy, with 7 of 17 analysts bullish, an average target of $155.24, a median of $135, a high of $260, and a low of $120. The framing is a mature cybersecurity name whose earnings power supports a mid-teens P/E as the sell side flips constructive after a long stretch of Neutral coverage.
Risks: platform competition from Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, and CrowdStrike continues to erode share in high-growth segments, geopolitical exposure to Israel-based operations, cloud and email security product-cycle transitions still working through the model, and buyback support that cannot indefinitely offset weak organic growth.
Advanced Energy Industries (AEIS) — Wells Fargo lifts the target sharply on data-center demand
Advanced Energy Industries makes precision power-conversion products for semiconductor manufacturing, industrial, medical, and data-center applications. On July 1, Wells Fargo analyst Joe Quatrochi upgraded the stock from Equal-Weight to Overweight and raised the price target from $345 to $465, calling recent share underperformance "a buying opportunity" and expecting second-quarter results to "highlight accelerating semi and data center demand." Susquehanna's Mehdi Hosseini carries Positive at $535, Cantor's C.J. Muse is at Overweight $450, and Bank of America's Duksan Jang holds Buy at $450.
Shares traded at $354.43 on July 1, down 4.95% in a broader semiconductor pullback, with a market cap of $13.5 billion and a trailing P/E of 48.75. The 52-week range is $128.40 to $397.44. The consensus rating is Strong Buy, with 9 of 10 analysts bullish, an average target of $418, a median of $412.50, a high of $535, and a low of $325. The framing is a data-center power-supply leader whose Wells Fargo upgrade landed on a down day, giving new positions an entry inside the 12-month average target.
Risks: semi equipment demand is cyclical and sensitive to WFE budget revisions from TSMC, Samsung, and Intel, data-center revenue mix is concentrated among a handful of hyperscalers, industrial and medical end-markets are soft, and the trailing 48x multiple leaves little room if 2Q disappoints.
Grindr (GRND) — Morgan Stanley calls the monetization inflection
Grindr operates the leading LGBTQ social and dating platform globally, with a paid-subscription and advertising revenue mix. On July 1, Morgan Stanley analyst Nathan Feather upgraded the stock from Equal-Weight to Overweight and raised the target from $15 to $18, writing that "GRND is a one-of-one asset that's heavily under monetized versus peers" and pointing to two forthcoming products—an ultra-premium subscription priced at $100 to $500 per month and a direct-to-consumer telehealth brand—as the key change agents. Goldman's Eric Sheridan is at Buy $17, TD Cowen's John Blackledge at Buy $22, and Citizens' Andrew Boone at Market Outperform $21.
Shares jumped to $15.73 on July 1, up 9.50%, with a market cap of $2.8 billion and a trailing P/E of 32.78. The 52-week range is $9.73 to $22.73. The consensus rating is Strong Buy, with all 4 covering analysts bullish, an average and median target of $19.50, a high of $22, and a low of $17. The framing is a small-cap consumer internet name where every analyst is bullish and the July 1 upgrade adds a bulge-bracket firm.
Risks: dating-subscription spending is exposed to a softer employment cycle, execution risk on the ultra-premium tier and telehealth brand is real, competitive dynamics against Match Group and independent apps continue, and small float amplifies moves in both directions.
XPO (XPO) — Evercore ISI adds it to the LTL Outperform trio
XPO is a pure-play less-than-truckload carrier after prior divestitures of contract logistics and brokerage. On July 1, Evercore ISI's Jonathan Chappell upgraded the stock from In-Line to Outperform and raised the price target from $222 to $232 in a three-name note that also lifted Old Dominion and Saia. Chappell wrote that LTL "volumes and weight are beginning to accelerate and the EPS growth rate of change is likely to take the next leg higher starting in 3Q." Jefferies's Stephanie Moore is at Buy $275, Stifel's J. Bruce Chan at Buy $232, and Wells Fargo's Christian Wetherbee at Overweight $205.
Shares traded at $207.14 on July 1, up 0.90%, with a market cap of $24.3 billion and a trailing P/E of 51.66. The 52-week range is $116.68 to $232.05. The consensus rating is Strong Buy, with 12 of 14 analysts bullish, an average target of $234.86, a median of $236, a high of $275, and a low of $200. The framing is an LTL turnaround where operating income per shipment continues to inflect and sell-side positioning confirms a 3Q volume ramp.
Risks: LTL demand is tied to industrial production and inventory restocking, XPO's operating ratio still trails Old Dominion's best-in-class levels, capacity additions from Estes and Saia can pressure pricing, and the trailing multiple prices in continued margin improvement.
Fox Corporation (FOXA) — Wolfe likes the Fox-Roku combination
Fox Corporation runs Fox News, Fox Sports, the Fox broadcast network, and Tubi, a capital-return story since the 21st Century Fox split. On July 1, Wolfe Research upgraded the stock from Peer Perform to Outperform, writing that "combining Fox and Roku strengthens both competitively and should double Fox's long-term sales growth rate." Guggenheim's Michael Morris is at Buy $85, Goldman's Michael Ng at Buy $87, and Bank of America's Jessica Reif Ehrlich at Buy $70. Barclays's Kannan Venkateshwar sits at Equal-Weight $60.
Shares traded at $53.90 on July 1, up 3.34%, with a market cap of $23.6 billion, a trailing P/E of 10.96, and a modest dividend. The 52-week range is $48.34 to $76.39. The consensus rating is Buy, with 5 of 11 analysts bullish, an average target of $74.91, a median of $77, a high of $87, and a low of $60. The framing is a value-plus-catalyst setup on a low-double-digit P/E where a corporate-action thesis is now explicitly modeled by a sell-side firm.
Risks: any Fox-Roku combination faces regulatory review and integration execution risk, linear ad markets and cord-cutting weigh on the base business, sports rights inflation is a margin headwind, and dual-class voting concentration at Fox limits governance flexibility.
Found this helpful? Share it with others.