Stocks and bonds both rallied on Wednesday on positive news about the war in Iran.

While news outlets reported the U.S. provided Iran with a 15-point peace plan, Iran denied any discussions.

With the Revolutionary Guard apparently now in command in Iran, an expanded conflict could be on the horizon.

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Futures are trading lower as we head into Thursday, and depending on today's narrative about how the war in Iran is progressing, whatever is revealed could chart the stock market's course once again. Stocks were up across the board on Wednesday after the United States announced a 15-point peace plan for Iran, which Iran, in turn, said it rejected. Once again, the small-cap Russell 2000 led the way, finishing the day up 1.03% at 2,531. The Nasdaq was strong as well, finishing the session up 0.77% at 21,921, while the Dow Jones Industrials closed up 0.66% at 46,429. The S&P 500 brought up the rear, but still finished the day up 0.54% at 6,591. Technicians will be watching closely if the venerable index can break back through the 6,600 level.

With the stock market rallying on Wednesday, it was no surprise that the buyers returned to Treasury bills and bonds as yields were down across the curve. The rally was driven primarily by the reports of the ceasefire plan between the U.S. and Iran. This development eased fears of a broader conflict in the Middle East, leading to a decline in oil prices and a reversal of the previous day's sharp sell-off in the bond market. The 30 year long bond closed at 4.92%, while the benchmark 10 year note was last seen at 4.33%. 

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Once again, the song remains the same as oil prices fell on the news of peace talks with Iran, even though they claimed they still want control of the Strait of Hormuz. The big worry across the energy complex now is massive LNG shortages, which investors need to keep a very close eye on. Brent Crude finished the Wednesday session down 1.3% at $103.20, while West Texas Intermediate closed at $91.32, down 1.12%. Natural gas was up 2.3% at $2.98.

For the second straight day, after nine consecutive days of selling gold, finished the session higher on Wednesday. All of the reasons for the gains in oil and the equity markets applied to the precious metals arena on Wednesday. Gold closed at $4,503, up 0.71%, while Silver closed flat at $70.98. 

Crypto markets bounced back on Wednesday, with major assets posting gains following a rocky start to the week. Investors weighed ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East against a wave of regulatory developments, as a newly released draft of the US Clarity Act, which proposes banning yield on stablecoins,  sparked sharp swings early in the week. Despite the uncertainty, analysts pointed to Bitcoin holding firm above $70,000 as a sign of resilience in the broader market. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin was trading at $71,299, while Ethereum was trading at $2,072. 

24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports daily to identify new investment ideas for both investors and traders. Some of these daily analyst calls cover stocks to buy. Other calls cover stocks to sell or avoid. Remember that no single analyst call should ever be used as a basis to buy or sell a stock.

Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen on Thursday, March 26, 2026.

Airbnb Inc.  (NASDAQ: ABNB) was upgraded to Hold from Sell at Truist with a $129 target price.

ARM Holdings Plc. (NYSE: ARM) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Needham, which has set a $200 price target for the stock.

Nucor Corp. (NYSE: NUE) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS, which bumped the target price for the steel giant to $190 from $184.

United Natural Foods Inc. (NYSE: UNFI) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Wells Fargo, which raised the target price for the shares to $56 from $40.

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp.  Inc. (NYSE: WAB) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Rothschild & Co Redburn, which raised the price target for the shares to $285 from $262.

Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) was assumed with a Market Perform rating, down from Outperform at William Blair, without a target price.

AvalonBay Communities Inc. (NYSE: AVB) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight  at Morgan Stanley, which trimmed the target price for the stock to $203 from $208

Hub Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HUBG) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Wells Fargo, which cut its target price to $35 from $55.

Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) was cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS, which trimmed the target price for the fertilizer giant to $27 from $33.

Timken Co. (NYSE: TKR) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan, which keeps a $100 target price for the shares.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) was initiated with a Buy rating at Jefferies, which has a $60 target price for the financial giant.

CAVA Group Inc. (NYSE: CAVA) was initiated with a Buy rating at Guggenheim, which has a $100 target price for the shares.

Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC) was initiated with a Buy rating at Citigroup, which has set a $58 target price for the utility.

Robinhood Markets Inc. (NASDAQ: HOOD) was started with a Buy rating at Jefferies, which has set an $88 target price objective.

Spotify Technology SA (NYSE: SPOT) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Daiwa, with a massive $535 target price for the music streaming behemoth.

 

 

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