Analysts picking new winners and losers in Monday calls of the day as coronavirus rattles global markets

Published Mon, Mar 9 20209:42 AM EDT

Key Points

SunTrust downgraded Occidental Petroleum to sell from hold.
Oppenheimer upgraded GrubHub to perform from underperform.
Baird upgraded American Express to outperform from neutral.
Argus upgraded Clorox to buy from hold.
JPMorgan downgraded Boot Barn to neutral from overweight.
Bank of America downgraded Marathon Oil to underperform from neutral.

(This story is for CNBC PRO subscribers only.) Wall Street's dramatic market turmoil has stock analysts revising their calls, highlighting companies set to benefit or decline from the coronavirus outbreak. Oil companies, most notably, face downgrades not only from the public health crisis, but a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Companies that provide cleaning solutions or help consumers who choose to stay at home, are getting upgrades. Here are the biggest calls on Wall Street on Monday: SunTrust downgraded Occidental Petroleum to 'sell' from 'hold' SunTrust downgraded Occidental due to the "collapse" in oil prices. "We believe oil prices are set to collapse to potentially the $20's & stay in the range for a moderate period given a price war that started Saturday when Saudi responded to Russia who Friday balked not only on increasing OPEC+ supply cuts but even extending existing OPEC+ cuts that end in three weeks along with continued oil demand destruction due to COVID19." Oppenheimer upgraded GrubHub to 'perform' from 'underperform' Oppenheimer upgraded the food delivery service and said it sees a "tailwind" from the coronavirus as more people work and stay home. "Upgrading GRUB shares to Perform from Underperform as we believe the impact from COVID-19 will provide a net tailwind. Given more people working from home and the potential to shy away from crowded restaurants, food delivery companies should benefit from an uptick in order frequency, assuming there are no city-wide quarantines (like those enacted in China). We could also see sustained industry-wide online delivery share gains after the impact of the virus subsides. Separately, we believe industry consolidation and capital discipline will be evolving themes for investors, which is bullish for valuations." Baird upgraded American Express to 'outperform' from 'neutral' Baird upgraded the stock and said it is more "insulated" from rate headwinds. "Today's analysis provides more perspective on rate sensitivity following the break lower in the 10 Yr. UST yield and market expectations for further Fed easing. Banks are increasingly discounting recession, and we think the 10 Yr. yield retraces higher when volatility normalizes. Today we are upgrading A XP and HBAN to Outperform and add CFG as a bullish Fresh Pick to reflect our more constructive view." Argus upgraded Clorox to 'buy' from 'hold' Argus upgraded the stock and said it stands to benefit from the company's cleaning and disinfectant products during the coronavirus crisis. "We expect sales of Clorox products to benefit from the coronavirus outbreak, and note that the company is adding to its inventory of disinfectants in response to the virus. Clorox is also expanding distribution, increasing promotional spending, and introducing new products such as smaller, more profitable containers of Clorox bleach. Management expects ad spending to increase to more than 10% of revenue, with promotional spending increasing over the remainder of the year, though stronger gross margins should partly offset the higher spending." JPMorgan downgraded Boot Barn to 'neutral' from 'overweight' JPMorgan downgraded the footwear company and said it saw headwinds due to the disruption in the oil and gas markets. "We are downgrading Boot Barn to Neutral from Overweight with the combination of (i) unfavorable forward macro exposure (ii) moderating workwear category trends (~28% of category mix) with the segment moving negative in 4Q, and (iii) ~500bps tougher Western Wear and non-oil/gas regional 2-year stacked compares on tap in 1H21 (relative to FY20) pointing to a more balanced risk/reward profile despite the recent pullback." Bank of America downgraded Marathon Oil to 'underperform' from 'neutral' Bank of America downgraded the petroleum and natural gas exploration company and said it was concerned about the Marathon's free cash flow outlook due to the collapse in oil prices. "While we acknowledge MRO 's history as a leader in the move to Shale 2.0 we see several risks to its free cash flow outlook that drive our view of relative underperformance. Specifically, potential for contract renegotiation at its EG LNG facility slated for 2023 and a maturing asset base in the L48, leave downside weighted risks and cash flow not material to support upside to our view of fair value."

Colorox brand toilet bowl cleaner sits on display at a supermarket in Princeton, Ill.

Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images

(This story is for subscribers only.)

Wall Street's dramatic market turmoil has stock analysts revising their calls, highlighting companies set to benefit or decline from the coronavirus outbreak.

Oil companies, most notably, face downgrades not only from the public health crisis, but a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Companies that provide cleaning solutions or help consumers who choose to stay at home, are getting upgrades.

Here are the biggest calls on Wall Street on Monday:

SunTrust downgraded Occidental Petroleum to 'sell' from 'hold'

SunTrust downgraded Occidental due to the "collapse" in oil prices.

"We believe oil prices are set to collapse to potentially the $20's & stay in the range for a moderate period given a price war that started Saturday when Saudi responded to Russia who Friday balked not only on increasing OPEC+ supply cuts but even extending existing OPEC+ cuts that end in three weeks along with continued oil demand destruction due to COVID19."

Oppenheimer upgraded GrubHub to 'perform' from 'underperform'

Oppenheimer upgraded the food delivery service and said it sees a "tailwind" from the coronavirus as more people work and stay home.

"Upgrading GRUB shares to Perform from Underperform as we believe the impact from COVID-19 will provide a net tailwind. Given more people working from home and the potential to shy away from crowded restaurants, food delivery companies should benefit from an uptick in order frequency, assuming there are no city-wide quarantines (like those enacted in China). We could also see sustained industry-wide online delivery share gains after the impact of the virus subsides. Separately, we believe industry consolidation and capital discipline will be evolving themes for investors, which is bullish for valuations."