Mizuho analyst Paul Sankey downgraded Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) to Neutral from Buy and lowered his price target for the shares to $158 from $206. Following Exxon Mobil's (XOM) and Chevron's (CVX) analyst days, Sankey sees less likelihood of a Pioneer Natural takeover. While the analyst's prior Buy rating was not based entirely on Pioneer Natural's takeout potential, he says an acquisition "does represent the most direct path for immediate realization of longer-term resource / inventory upside." He now believes the shares will lag his coverage on mid-cycle free cash flow yield.

Notable companies reporting before tomorrow's open, with earnings consensus, include Exxon Mobil (XOM), consensus $2.20... Chevron (CVX), consensus $2.87... AbbVie (ABBV), consensus $2.23... HCA Healthcare (HCA), consensus $5.01... Colgate-Palmolive (CL), consensus 81c... Charter (CHTR), consensus $7.92... AutoNation (AN), consensus $4.27.

Chevron announced that its 50% owned affiliate Tengizchevroil has safely commenced operations at its Wellhead Pressure Management Project, or WPMP, at the Tengiz oil field in Kazakhstan. TCO achieved this milestone by converting its first metering station at Tengiz to low pressure and activating the associated Pressure Boost Facility, or PBF. This marks important progress for TCO's overall expansion project at Tengiz. The WPMP is designed to maintain the existing processing plants' full capacity by lowering the flowing pressure at the wellheads and then boosting the pressure to the existing plants.