Analyst upgrades:
- Roth Capital upgraded MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) to Buy from Hold and raised its target to $90 from $70, citing encouraging Q2 results, new product cycle catalysts, a lift from Europe, and cost reductions.
- William Blair upgraded Costco (NASDAQ: COST) to Outperform from Market Perform after meeting with management as it believes sales and earnings could beat expectations over the next year.
- Credit Suisse upgraded Novellus (NASDAQ: NVLS) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $29 from $23. The firm cites higher Samsung capex forecast, high leverage, and low expectations.
- Home Properties (NYSE: HME) and Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) were upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at FBC Capital, while Douglas Emmett (NYSE: DEI) and Duke Realty (NYSE: DRE) were raised to Market Perform from Underperform.
- Agilent (NYSE: A) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
- Cytec Industries (NYSE: CYT) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at KeyBanc.
Analyst downgrades:
- Kaufman Bros. downgraded American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC) to Hold from Buy on valuation and a lack of backlog growth. The firm keeps a $36 price target on shares.
- Soleil downgraded Mosaic (NYSE: MOS) to Hold from Buy on valuation after Potash (NYSE: POT) lowered its earnings guidance. The firm lowered its target on shares to $56 from $65.
- RBC downgraded Jack in the Box (NASDAQ: JACK) to Sector Perform from Outperform as it sees heightened earnings risk due to slowing same-store sales. The firm lowered its target on shares to $25 from $28.
- Boston Properties (NYSE: BXP) and BioMed Realty (NYSE: BMR) were cut to Market Perform from Outperform at FBR Capital, while AMB Property (NYSE: AMB) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform.
- Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at FTN Equity.
Analyst initiations:
- Jefferies initiated Alliant Techsystems (NYSE: ATK) with a Buy rating and $100 target. The firm believes concerns surrounding Alliant's NASA business are overstated and the company's core programs should generate above-average cash flow for redeployment.
- Citigroup believes MedAssets (NASDAQ: MDAS) has a unique competitive position within hospitals and a compelling valuation. Shares were started with a Buy rating and $28 target.
- RBC Capital initiated OncoGenex (NASDAQ: OGXI) with an Outperform rating and $65 target. The firm believes the company will sign a partnership agreement for OGX-011 within the next year that will be a catalyst for the stock.
- Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at JMP Securities.
- Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) was initiated with an Overweight rating and $61 target at HSBC.
- Cumberland Pharma (NASDAQ: CPIX) was initiated with an Outperform rating at Wells Fargo.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-21-2009 @ 12:21PM
Vittal said...
How is it that you forgot to include an upgrade for AAPL at JPM with a price target of $214 ???
9-21-2009 @ 12:21PM
Beltway Greg said...
Microstrategy upgraded on cost reductions? Explanation:
CEO Michael Saylor has decided against purchasing the G5 and has instead opted to rough it in a Lear. Way to lead by example big guy. But stay tuned, things could change.