BofA/Merrill analyst Juan Sanabria upgraded HCP to Buy from Neutral and raised its price target to $25 from $24 citing valuation and a lower risk profile. Sanabria said HCP has less exposure to senior housing and assisted living relative to peers, which is facing a challenging 2018 due to the flu, supply, and increasing wages. The analyst believes guidance is achievable and senior housing could trough in 2018, supporting his view that valuation is attractive.

BTIG downgraded HashiCorp (HCP) to Neutral from Buy without a price target. The analyst sees a balanced risk/reward after the stock's recent run following takeover speculation. The firm believes the potential takeover by IBM (IBM) has a "lot of merits." HashiCorp is a good strategic asset with strong product capabilities, and deal synergies with a large acquirer such as IBM would be substantial, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Given there is still some uncertainty on a deal being consummated and a typical closing process in the 6-9 month range, BTIG sees limited incremental upside to shares in the near term.

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IBM (IBM) is nearing an acquisition of HashiCorp (HCP) and deal could come together in the coming days, Lauren Thomas and Laura Cooper of Wall Street Journal report, citing people familiar with the matter. A deal for HashiCorp would likely command a premium above where the stock is currently trading, the Journal says. Shares of HashiCorp jumped 7% to $26.37 following the report before halting for volatility. IBM is down 66c to $181.28 in afternoon trade. Reference Link