Analyst downgrades 10-3-06: Sony and Dell cut to Neutral

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

Sony Corp (NYSE: SNE) and the Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) top today's extensive list of downgrades.

• Sony was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs, citing concerns over the gaming business and the competitive electronics environment.
• Dell was downgraded by American Technology to Neutral from Buy, citing risk to 2007 estimates given the competitive pressures from Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ), Apple Computer (AAPL) and Lenovo (LNVGY).

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

Goldman Sachs downgraded the Lodging Sector to Neutral from Attractive, citing the expected industry-wide deceleration of 2007 RevPAR growth.

• In addition, Goldman noted that Marriott International Inc. (NYSE: MAR), Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: HOT) and Hilton Hotels Corp. (NYSE: HLT) historically underperform after reporting Q3 earnings.
• The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America. The firm cited valuation, a mixed outlook for specialties and the company's reluctance to accelerate share buybacks for the downgrade.
• Finally, Wachovia downgraded T.Rowe Price Group Inc. (NASDAQ: TROW) to Market Perform from Outperform, citing valuation, highlighting shares trading at a 10% premium to its peers.

Downgrade summaries provided courtesy of TheFlyOnTheWall.com.