Analyst upgrades:
- Keefe Bruyette upgraded Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) to Outperform from Market Perform on expectations that derivatives trading will increase in the coming quarters.
- NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Janney Montgomery, which believes that the company's earnings have hit bottom, while the company could report better-than-expected Q1 results.
- Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) was upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital. The firm thinks the company is an early-cycle story that has significant upside potential.
- UBS upgraded Walgreen (NYSE: WAG) to Buy from Neutral citing cost cutting efforts and slowing store growth.
- Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Benchmark Co.
- Safeway (NYSE: SWY) was upgraded to Buy from Hold by BB&T.
- Needham upgraded Targacept (NASDAQ: TRGT) to Buy from Hold.
- Sierra Wireless (NASDAQ: SWIR) was raised to Buy from Hold at Jesup & Lamont.
Analyst downgrades:
- Goldman Sachs dropped Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) to Neutral from Buy based on valuation.
- JPMorgan downgraded Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI) on valuation and concerns Q4 guidance could disappoint investors.
- F5 Networks (NASDAQ: FFIV) was downgraded to Perform from Outperform by Oppenheimer based on valuation.
- Shaw Group (NYSE: SHAW) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at RW Baird.
- Scientific Games (NASDAQ: SGMS) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.
- Citigroup dropped Liberty Capital (NASDAQ: LCAPA) to Hold from Buy.
- RBS downgraded Nokia (NYSE: NOK) to Hold from Buy.
Analyst initiations:
- Benchmark Co. initiated Aspen Technology (OTC: AZPN) with a Hold rating. The firm expects Aspen's shares to be range-bound pending clarity on the company's accounting restatement, business model transition, and likely shelf registration.
- Barclays initiated Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) with an Overweight rating and $48 target. Credit Suisse started SAIC (NYSE: SAI) with an Outperform rating and $22 target.
- Aeropostale (NYSE: ARO) was initiated with a Buy rating and $51 target at Auriga.
- Aetna (NYSE: AET) was reinstated with an Underperform rating at BofA/Merrill.
- Plains Exploration (NYSE: PXP) was initiated with an Outperform at FBR Capital.
- Humana (NYSE: HUM) was reinstated with a Buy at BofA/Merrill.
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