Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: MS, BBC, DOW, COST, VLO, WSM ...

Analyst upgrades:

FBR Capital upgraded KBW, Inc (NYSE: KBW) to Market Perform from Underperform as it sees increased capital-raising opportunities for small and mid-sized banks and believes the company's quarter is off to a strong start. The firm raised its target price to $23 from $18.
Pali Capital upgraded Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) to Buy from Neutral on expectations the company's strategic shift towards advisory, distribution and retail will be monetized sooner than expected and its capital markets business is gaining traction. The firm set a $33 target on the stock.
Baird upgraded Stericycle (NASDAQ: SRCL) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $58 from $55 based on valuation predictable earnings, and its market leading platform.
Apollo Investment (NYSE: AINV) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette.
HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) was lifted at Goldman to Buy from Neutral.
Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Analyst downgrades:

UBS downgraded STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) to Sell from Neutral on valuation after lowering its rating on the European Semiconductor sector to Neutral.
William Blair downgraded VNUS Medical (NYSE: VNUS) to Market Perform from Outperform following the Covidien (NYSE: COV) acquisition as it believes chances of another bid are low.
Goldman downgraded Costco (NYSE: COST) to Neutral from Buy citing earnings risk from higher gas prices and FX headwinds. The firm has a $50 price target on shares.
Micron (NYSE: MU) was cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS.
Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO) was lowered to Sell from Neutral at Goldman.
Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein.

Analyst initiations:

Pali Capital started Changyou.com (NYSE: CYOU) with a Neutral rating. The firm finds shares fully priced at current levels.
Taleo (NYSE: TLEO) was initiated at Banc of America/Merrill with a Neutral rating and $16 target.
Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) was assumed at Goldman with a Neutral rating and $40 target.
Macrovision (NYSE: MVSN) was initiated with a Buy rating and $32 target at Collins Stewart.

Tags: ainv, cost, cov, cyou, dow, hbc, jll, kbw, ms, mu, mvsn, srcl, stm, tleo, vlo, vnus, wsm

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