Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: ALL, CMG, GRMN, IP, VRSN ...

Analyst upgrades:

Goldman said International Paper (NYSE: IP) is its top pick in the group citing leverage to early cycle containerboard. The firm upgraded shares to Conviction Buy from Buy and has a $26 target on the stock.
Morgan Keegan upgraded Healthcare Realty Trust (NYSE: HR) to Outperform from Market Perform citing valuation and better-than-expected Q2 results.
William Blair upgraded Harbin Electric (NASDAQ: HRBN) to Outperform from Market Perform as it believes the Chinese economy is likely to accelerate and the company's balance sheet is strengthened following the retirement of debt.
Allstate (NYSE: ALL) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.
VeriSign (NASDAQ: VRSN) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Commercial Vehicle Group (NASDAQ: CVGI) was upgraded to Overweight from Underweight at JPMorgan.

Analyst downgrades:

Goldman added Garmin (NASDAQ: GRMN) to its Conviction Sell List citing risk to Q4 and 2010 Street estimates and valuation. The firm, which cut shares to Conviction Sell from Sell, has a $23 target on the stock.
Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Comstock Resources (NYSE: CRK) and CNX Gas (NYSE: CXG) to Hold from Buy on valuation and the firms' concerns about near-term gas prices.
Stifel Nicolaus also downgraded YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW) to Sell from Hold. The firm believes that bankruptcy is becoming an increasingly likely outcome for YRC, as the firm does not think the concessions obtained from the Teamsters will allow it to thrive over the long-term.
Natural Resource (NYSE: NRP) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ: TXRH) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Cowen.
Canaccord downgraded Cardiome Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: CRME) to Hold from Buy.

Analyst initiations:

Kaufman Bros. initiated Synaptics (NASDAQ: SYNA) with a Buy rating and $38 target. The firm believes touch interface technologies is still early in its adoption cycle and that Synaptics has a key advantage in the space.
Merriman believes positive data from ITMN-191 can drive significant upside in Intermune (NASDAQ: ITMN) shares. The firm has a Buy rating and target price range of $15-$19.
Deutsche Bank believes Seattle Genetics' (NASDAQ: SGEN) Hodgkin's treatment, SGN-35, offers significant upside potential. Shares were started with a Buy rating and $14 target.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) was initiated with a Sell rating and $75 target at Jesup & Lamont.
Salix (NASDAQ: SLXP) was initiated with a Buy rating and $18-$22 target at Merriman.