U.S. stocks settled higher on Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining more than 300 points and S&P 500 surging to record close during the session.

Major indices also recorded gains for the second straight week, with the S&P 500 rising 3.6% and the Nasdaq surging 5.2%. The Dow also jumped around 3% last week.

Wall Street analysts make new stock picks on a daily basis. Unfortunately for investors, not all analysts have particularly impressive track records at predicting market movements. Even when it comes to one single stock, analyst ratings and price targets can vary widely, leaving investors confused about which analyst’s opinion to trust.

Benzinga’s Analyst Ratings API is a collection of the highest-quality stock ratings curated by the Benzinga news desk via direct partnerships with major sell-side banks. Benzinga displays overnight ratings changes on a daily basis three hours prior to the U.S. equity market opening. Data specialists at investment dashboard provider Toggle.ai recently uncovered that the analyst insights Benzinga Pro subscribers and Benzinga readers regularly receive can successfully be used as trading indicators to outperform the stock market.

Top Analyst Picks: Fortunately, any Benzinga reader can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. One of the ways traders can sort through Benzinga’s extensive database of analyst ratings is by analyst accuracy. Here’s a look at the most recent stock picks from each of the five most accurate Wall Street analysts, according to Benzinga Analyst Stock Ratings.

Analyst: Timothy Arcuri

  • Analyst Firm: UBS
  • Ratings Accuracy: 87%
  • Latest Rating: Maintained a Buy rating on Microchip Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MCHP) and cut the price target from $130 to $120 on Aug. 7. This analyst sees around 42% upside in the stock.
  • Recent News: On Aug. 6, Microchip Technology reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and issued second-quarter guidance above estimates.

Analyst: Josh Silverstein

  • Analyst Firm: UBS
  • Ratings Accuracy: 83%
  • Latest Rating: Maintained a Neutral rating on Murphy Oil Corp (NYSE:MUR) and lowered the price target from $41 to $38 on Aug. 7. This analyst sees around 13% upside in the stock.
  • Recent News: On Aug. 5, Murphy Oil reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results.

Analyst: Andrea Alfonso

  • Analyst Firm:  UBS
  • Ratings Accuracy: 80%
  • Latest Rating: Maintained a Neutral rating on Zoetis Inc (NYSE:ZTS) and cut the price target from $85 to $80 on Aug. 7. This analyst expects around 9% gain in the stock.
  • Recent News: On Aug. 6, Zoetis reported better-than-expected second-quarter adjusted EPS results.

Analyst: Daniel Major

  • Analyst Firm: UBS
  • Ratings Accuracy: 79%
  • Latest Rating: Maintained a Buy rating on Royal Gold Inc (NASDAQ:RGLD) and increased the price target from $280 to $285 on Aug. 7. This analyst expects around 24% surge in the stock.
  • Recent News: On Aug. 5, Royal Gold posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results.

Analyst: Andres Coello

  • Analyst Firm: Scotiabank
  • Ratings Accuracy: 76%
  • Latest Rating: Maintained a Sector Underperform rating on Millicom International Cellular SA (NASDAQ:TIGO) and raised the price target from $52.4 to $60.1 on Aug. 7. This analyst sees around 38% decline in the stock.
  • Recent News: On Aug. 6, Millicom International Cellular posted better-than-expected second-quarter financial results.

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