Analyst upgrades:
- Jefferies upgraded Warner Chilcott (NASDAQ: WCRX) to Buy from Hold. The firm views Warner Chilcott's acquisition of P&G's (NYSE: PG) pharma business as a positive given its attractive product fit and purchase price.
- ThinkEquity upgraded Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) to Buy from Source of Funds and raised its target to $550 from $400. Previously, the firm thought Google Street estimates were too high and that low single-digit growth in Q2 and Q3 would cause multiple contraction. They said their thesis played out fundamentally but they were wrong on the stock. Given Q2 has past, the analyst raised estimates above consensus and expects an in-line Q3 and for shares to outperform as the economic cycle turns.
- Bernstein upgraded Diageo (NYSE: DEO) to Outperform from Market Perform and views Diageo's valuation as attractive. The firm expects 2H09 results on August 27 to mark a bottom in weakening top-line trends.
- Costco (NASDAQ: COST) was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at William Blair.
- Lowe's (NYSE: LOW) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
- Siemens (NYSE: SI) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.
Analyst downgrades:
- JPMorgan downgraded Charlotte Russe (NASDAQ: CHIC) to Neutral from Overweight following its acquisition by Advent International for $17.50 per share.
- Macquarie downgraded Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) to Neutral from outperform and Sunpower (NASDAQ: SPWRA) to Underperform from Neutral citing pricing pressure. The firm cut its target on Canadian Solar to $17.50 from $26 and has a $23.50 target on Sunpower.
- UBS downgraded Denbury Resources (NYSE: DNR) to Neutral from Buy and cut its target to $18 from $19 citing valuation and the 2010 spending outlook.
- Ashland (NYSE: ASH) was downgraded to Neutral from Positive at Susquehanna.
- FNB Corp. (NYSE: FNB) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at B. Riley.
- Blackrock (NYSE: BLK) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Pali Capital.
Analyst initiations:
- Jefferies initiated Visa (NYSE: V) with a Buy rating and $80 target. The firm views Visa as the best positioned company in the payments industry and a core holding.
- Wells Fargo initiated Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) with an Outperform rating. The firm thinks the company's recent strategic moves will allow it to become a content focused media player with industry leading assets. Wells believes the company's EPS will exceed expectations, driving the stock higher.
- Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL) was initiated with an Outperform rating and $40 target at Credit Suisse.
- Coinstar (NASDAQ: CSTR) was initiated with an Overweight rating and $38 target at Thomas Weisel.
- Timberland (NYSE: TBL) was initiated with a Hold rating at Stifel Nicolaus.
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