Analysts Back Airlines, Semis, and Biotech

Airline stocks picked up fresh target price upgrades Friday. Delta Air Lines saw its consensus target rise to $86.41. United Airlines hit $136.63. Southwest Airlines edged up to $47.51. All three moves came in a single sweep, pointing to a broad sector re-rating rather than stock-specific news.

The sharpest individual call came from Wells Fargo on Applied Materials. Analyst Joe Quatrochi lifted his target to $740 from $715. The Buy rating stays in place. AMAT carries a $530 billion market cap. Short interest sits at just 2.7% of free float. Bears are not a big presence here.

UBS made two moves worth noting. On Darden Restaurants, Dennis Geiger raised his target to $240 from $230, keeping a Buy. On biotech name Incyte Corporation, Ashwani Verma lifted to $113 from $103, a 10-point jump. Incyte's target is now at a 10-year analyst consensus high for the name. The Hold rating stays, but the $10 move signals growing confidence in the pipeline.

Energy targets split two ways. Exxon Mobil consensus ticked up slightly to $170.29. EOG Resources and Diamondback Energy both saw modest target trims, reflecting softer oil price expectations near-term.