Nasdaq futures rise as Cramer flags semiconductors and analyst moves

U.S. stock futures pointed higher Monday, with Nasdaq futures the leading gainer as semiconductor shares including SK Hynix strengthened, CNBC's Jim Cramer said. West Texas Intermediate crude was steady despite further fighting in the Middle East over the weekend, he said, framing a market open shaped by technology, aerospace, consumer and banking updates.

Cramer said investors were seeing a break from the recent pattern of weak Monday openings. He also argued that gains were not confined to technology, saying in a CNBC Investing Club column that some opportunities were appearing outside a group where earlier popular trades had cooled.

Artificial intelligence remained central to several items on Cramer's Monday watch list. He said the market was still assessing Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 model from China, while raising the issue of whether large U.S. companies would be willing to send data into a Chinese-developed model given mistrust between Washington and Beijing.

Bristol Myers Squibb is buying Nvidia's newest enterprise AI computing system for drug discovery and development, according to Cramer. Bristol Myers said earlier Nvidia hardware had already altered its research and development work, he added. Cramer also noted that Eli Lilly and Nvidia have a separate AI drug discovery partnership.

SpaceX, Astera Labs and aerospace updates

SpaceX shares were about 1% higher before the open, Cramer said, after the stock ended the prior week with six consecutive declines. He said the shares were 8% below their $135 initial public offering price and almost 40% below their June 16 record close, with short-selling pressure contributing to the move. After calling off a Starship test flight last week, SpaceX plans another attempt Thursday evening, according to Cramer.

Barclays raised its price target on Astera Labs to $325 from $200 while maintaining a buy rating, Cramer said. The bank's analysts said Amazon spending alone could represent more than $3 billion of revenue for Astera, which supplies connectivity technology used in AI computing and works closely with Nvidia, according to Cramer.

UBS began coverage of Honeywell Aerospace with a hold rating and a $231 price target, citing slower growth in aftermarket activity, Cramer said. Aftermarket revenue comes from services and products sold after aircraft delivery, including safety technology. Aeromexico announced it would deploy Honeywell Aerospace's anti-collision Surface Alerts system across its Boeing aircraft, he added.

Analysts adjust targets on Accenture, Yeti and PNC

Wells Fargo trimmed its Accenture price target to $194 from $200 while keeping a buy rating, according to Cramer. The bank's analysts slightly increased full-year earnings estimates after Accenture's recent $5 billion debt raise and the company's indication that $2 billion of share buybacks would be completed by the fourth quarter, he said.

Goldman Sachs upgraded Yeti to buy from hold and lifted its price target to $63 from $46, Cramer said. The analysts cited channel checks showing the cooler maker's growth outlook was becoming more durable, while also pointing to inventory constraints and planned restocking.

Citi raised its price target on PNC Financial to $290 from $280 and kept a buy rating, according to Cramer. PNC reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and revenue last Wednesday, and Cramer said several other analysts also increased their price targets last week.

This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.