American Airlines (AMR) has become about as low-rent as one could imagine. I can stomach paying to check bags and for snacks. To me, it makes sense, as they provide important revenue streams and strike me as products and services for which it's possible to charge with little disruption to the passenger experience.

But, as of May 1, 2010, the airline will be charging $8 for a blanket and inflatable neck pillow on flights lasting more than two hours – including flights to Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. But, for your trouble, American will toss in a $10 coupon towards a purchase of more than $30 from Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY).

Of course, on flights lasting less than two hours, American's policy is BYO. If you want to stay warm, cram your own blanket into your carry-on.

The 2009 equity market recovery has led to an increase in Q ratios for the world's largest retailers. What does this mean? They're using their tangible assets effectively and have demonstrated the strength of intangible factors, such as brand and operational efficiency, to create shareholder value.

"Q" is the ratio of a public company's market capitalization to the market value of its tangible assets. So, a Q ratio of above one means that investors value the company's non-tangible assets -- e.g., brand, differentiation, innovation, customer experience and customer loyalty -- and see these factors as reasons to pay a higher price per share. A company with a Q ratio of below one can't generate a sufficient return on its physical assets. According to Deloitte, this could create an arbitrage opportunity, as it may be ripe for an acquisition.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks:

• Ark Restaurants Corp. (ARKR) shares declined after Q4 earnings fell short of consensus expectations.
• Azz Inc. (AZZ) Q3 net income fell more than expected but the company reaffirmed its earnings outlook.
• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) reported strong Q3 results, sending shares to a new 52-week high.
• Best Buy Inc. (BBY) declined to lift its earnings forecast despite strong December sales, send shares lower.
• Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ) lower Q3 earnings topped expectations and revenue declined as well.

Today's stock market was up more than it was not throughout the trading session, yet the feeling was more of an up-day after better than expected retail data and after more and more data points to a decent jobs figure for Friday's unemployment and non-farms payrolls data. Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 10,607.69 +34.01 (0.32%)
S&P 500 1,141.65 +4.51 (0.40%)
Nasdaq 2,299.00 -2.09 (-0.09%)

Top Analyst Upgrades/Downgrades

Analyst Upgrades

• Credit Suisse views Bank of America (BAC) as the "cheapest" large-cap bank and said the recent TARP repayment removes a significant overhang. The firm upgraded shares to outperform from neutral and raised its target to $21 from $17.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) to neutral from underweight following the company's better-than-expected Q3 results. The firm has a $43 price target on the stock.
• Caris upgraded Zumiez (ZUMZ) to above average from average following the company's better-than-expected December sales report. The firm raised its target on shares to $17 from $14.
• Humana (HUM) was upgraded to equal weight from underweight at Barclays.
• Zimmer (ZMH) was upgraded to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Applied Industrial (AIT) was upgraded to buy from hold at KeyBanc.

Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) scored in its fiscal third quarter. Sales rose well over 10%. Same-store sales increased a very impressive 7.3%. The real star, however, was the net income number. Earnings per diluted share soared 71% higher to 58 cents.

Wow, huh? Bed Bath & Beyond's management really benefited from the improving times. You've also got to give some credit to good retail positioning. Analysts weren't counting on much more than 43 cents per share, according to Earnings.com. In addition, I found the nine-month statement of cash flows a pleasing document to read.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect for-profit education provider Apollo Group Inc. (APOL) to start of the new year right when it reports fiscal first quarter 2010 results this week. During the three months that ended in November, Apollo's subsidiary, Apollo Global, saw management changes and its University of Phoenix was recertified to participate in Title IV programs.

Apollo Group is expected to report that earnings rose 22.8% from a year ago to $1.45 per share. Revenue for the quarter is expected to total $1.2 billion, which is 25.9% higher than a year ago. So far, the forecast is for similar year-over-year growth of EPS and revenue in the second quarter. This Phoenix-based company has topped earnings estimates in the past five quarters, by as much as 13 cents per share.

Here are some highlights from last week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) shares rose after it reaffirmed its full-year earnings and sales outlook.
• Automatic Data Processing Inc. (NASDAQ: ADP) will have low double-digit EPS growth, predicts one analyst.
• AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) posted a decline in earnings but a small rise in sales, sending shares lower.
• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) posted better-than-expected Q2 earnings and higher revenue.
• CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) rallied to a new 52-week high after topping analysts' Q2 earnings expectations.
• Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) reported better-than-expected Q3 results and raised its full-year guidance.

Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), a chain that competes with Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and Target (NYSE: TGT), issued Q2 numbers on Wednesday after the conclusion of the regular trading session. Net sales increased over 3%, and earnings per diluted share expanded by 13% to 52 cents. The retailer beat expectations by four pennies, according to the earnings preview.

This is a good showing for the retailer. As we all know, the economy continues to show signs of improvement. At least, that's what the pundits and the headlines have been telling us. An earnings report like this from a retailer does offer some evidence that the worst is behind us.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY), the largest domestic superstore chain in the U.S., is scheduled to discuss its second quarter 2009 results Wednesday in a conference call at 5:00 PM ET. You can catch the live webcast of the call on the company's website.

The retailer easily beat Wall Street expectations in the first quarter, and for the three months that ended in August, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the New Jersey-based company to report net income of $0.48 per share, two pennies per share better than a year ago. Revenue for the second quarter is expected to be 2.8% higher to $1.9 billion.

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says if you wait for market conditions to reach perfection, you'll be waiting a long time.

You know what? I am going to wait until I am sure housing has turned before I buy the homebuilders like Lennar (NYSE: LEN) (Cramer's Take) and Pulte (NYSE: PHM) (Cramer's Take). I am going to wait until the foreclosures peak before I buy Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) (Cramer's Take) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) (Cramer's Take).

I am going to wait until unemployment goes down before I buy 3M (NYSE: MMM) (Cramer's Take) and Disney (NYSE: DIS) (Cramer's Take) and IBM (NYSE: IBM) (Cramer's Take) and Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) (Cramer's Take).

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says that to go higher from here, we need some bearish bets that are currently MIA.

We need some doom-and-gloomers to go higher here. I didn't hear any last week and it is worrisome. Without some avowed bears, we could be stalled here until we see some earnings even though seasonally this is a terrific time.

I say that because as I looked for things to talk about on Friday's show, I was hoping to find some stocks where there have been big negative bets made and really couldn't. Natural gas had been thick with bears and those stocks are still going down, but I don't see a lot of bearish bets being made. We had some in retail, but they seem to have dried up since Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) (Cramer's Take). Tech? Boy, I don't see any bears at all going into what should be a remarkably negative period, at least historically.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Accenture Ltd. (NYSE: ACN) beat earnings expectations but revenue was hurt by currency effects.
• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) strong Q1 results beat estimates but same-store sales fell.
• CKE Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: CKR) lower Q1 earnings and strong sales both topped expectations.
• ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE: CAG) higher Q4 earnings were in line with expectations, and shares slipped.
• Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) Q4 results were higher, but it warned of continuing challenges.
• Hennes & Mauritz (OTC: HMRZF) reported strong Q2 numbers, though same-stores sales slipped.

Leading domestics retailer Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) closed more than 9% higher today after the one-two punch of a well-received earnings report and a brokerage upgrade. The company announced first-quarter results of 34 cents per share, a whopping nine cents better than analysts were expecting. Revenue edged 2.8% higher year over year. The one gray lining was same-store sales numbers, which drifted 1.6% lower during the reporting period.

Reacting to this after-the-close earnings report, Cowen & Co. upgraded the shares this morning to "neutral" from "underperform." The brokerage noted that BBBY has been able to cut advertising expenses now that its chief competitor, LInens n' Things, has filed for bankruptcy. Cowen also notes that BBBY has reduced its payroll expenses.

Home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) reported earnings today after the market closed, announcing earnings per share (EPS) of $0.34 compared with analyst consensus of $0.25 and results of $0.30 in the prior quarter last year. Revenues of $1.7 billion also topped estimates, rising 2.8%, although comparable store sales fell 1.6%. Shares were up about 2.5% in trading today, and jumped following the announcement.

In addition to its eponymous store chain, the company also owns Christmas Tree Shops, Harmon, and buybuy BABY. The flagship Bed Bath & Beyond stores make up approximately 90% of the more than 1,000 total locations the company operates.