Today was not just a strange day in the market. It was nearly baffling. At least it was a strange day if you were looking for the pullbacks to continue. The market was looking lower as the double-dip jobless numbers got worse than expected again, despite final Q1 GDP revisions being less-bad. The quarter-end coming up and the Russell re-balance may have some impact here.

Most of the gains continued throughout the morning into the early afternoon as investors got more confident over Ben Bernanke's testimony strength. Here were the unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,475.57 +175.71 (2.12%)
S&P 500 920.28 +19.34 (2.15%)
Nasdaq 1,829.43 +37.09 (2.07%)

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Equities stabilized today after two relatively large selling waves in equities. It even looks like we only had a 1% trading range in the DJIA from top to bottom today. The housing data might have helped marginally, but that was actually negative data if you dig down into the numbers.

The hope for a return to growth is starting to see a bit of what may be reality setting in now that even Mr. Obama expects double-digit unemployment to become a reality. It seems that the rise in oil actually helped to keep equities higher. Here are today's closing bell levels:

Dow 8,322.46 -16.55 (-0.20%)
S&P 500 894.99 +1.95 (0.22%)
Nasdaq 1,764.92 -1.27 (-0.07%)

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Despite Moody's claiming the US's Triple-A rating was stable, the markets sold off today. The markets tried to hold up but the afternoon session was marked by selling as bond yields rose on the long-end of the curve. The 10-Year Treasury yield was up 20 basis points to 3.697% and the 30-Year Treasury yield was up 16 basis points to 4.60%.

Here were the unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,300.98 -172.51 (-2.04%)
S&P 500 893.13 -17.20 (-1.89%)
Nasdaq 1,731.08 -19.35 (-1.11%)

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Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Aruba Networks (NASDAQ: ARUN) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q3 results to reflect improved visibility. The firm raised its target price to $6.50 from $3.
• Citigroup upgraded Mosaic (NYSE: MOS) and Potash (NYSE: POT) to Buy from Hold and Agrium (NYSE: AGU) to Hold from Sell as it believes stronger grain fundamentals more than offset China contract risk. The firm raised its target on Mosaic to $72 from $48, on Potash to $145 from $83 and on Agrium to $55 from $36.
• Fulton Financial (NASDAQ: FULT) Was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Keefe Bruyette.
• Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP) was raised to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.
• Noble Corp. (NYSE: NE) was upgraded at Deutsche Bank to Buy from Hold.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT - option chain) shares are higher today despite the surrounding market meltdown after a study released over the weekend showed the company's Xience stent showed significant safety advantages over competitor Boston Scientific's (NYSE: BSX) Taxus stent. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on ABT.

ABT opened this morning at $46.69. So far today the stock has hit a low of $46.65 and a high of $47.90. As of 11:35, ABT is trading at $47.73, up $1.13 (2.4%). The chart for ABT looks bullish and S&P gives ABT a positive 5 STARS (out of 5) strong buy ranking.

Today was just another negative day at the office after yesterday. It felt as though we were trying to hold on when we saw a four day winning streak, but in this market it seems we constantly get reminded that good news is a brief thing.

Today's GDP was worse than a 3% drop year over year, but the economists were looking for worse than 5%. Everyone is fixated on the "bad bank" hopes, and it seems that realities will trump hopes in the end. So things still went from soft to ugly over the course of the day. Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,000.94 -148.07 (-1.82%)
S&P 500 825.90 -19.24 (-2.28%)
Nasdaq 1,476.42 -31.42 (-2.08%)

Top Analyst Upgrades
Top Analyst Downgrades

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded shares of Consol Energy (NYSE: CNX) to Buy from Hold following the company's lowered guidance as 2009 is fully contracted with a 26% price increase. The firm raised its target to $40 from $38.
  
• Deutsche Bank upgraded AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) to Buy from Hold on valuation as it thinks the sell-off on the company's Q4 miss and cautious guidance is overdone.
  
• Wachovia upgraded Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) to Outperform from Market Perform because the firm thinks the outlook of the company's two main markets is improving. The firm believes the company's valuation is attractive. Thomas Weisel upgraded Boston Scientific to Overweight from Market Weight citing valuation and improving fundamentals.
• Goldman added MasterCard (NYSE: MA) to the Conviction Buy List.
  
• Accuray (NASDAQ: ARAY) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
  
• KLA-Tencor (NASDAQ: KLAC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.

It's one of those unfortunate facts of life, everyone is going to get sick at some time in their lives. It could be something as simple as the common cold or a complex series of symptoms that takes years to diagnose. The upside of all of this is that the medical business is a relatively safe bet when it comes to investments. If you see the benefit of this and want to put some money into a health care related investment, look into an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) that will give you the opportunity to hold shares in several different companies rather than trying to guess who's going to come up with the next miracle cure.

There are a couple different companies that let you get your feet wet in the medical field. You could invest in medical devices, which covers everything from stethoscopes to complicated surgical tools. iShares Dow Jones US Medical Devices ETF (NYSE: IHI) lets you in on an investment that includes leaders in the field such as Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX), Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), and Covidien, Ltd. (NYSE: COV). Each of these companies provides medical devices that hospitals simply cannot do without.

IHI looks to achieve results that correspond to the Dow Jones US Select Medical Equipment index and through a computer aided system, rather than by using money managers, they're able to charge only a 0.48% fee to maintain your stock.

Another great way to invest in the healthcare business is to buy shares in the companies who work tirelessly to provide lifesaving drugs. The Exchange Traded Fund SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals (XPH) lets you in on several of the top pharmaceutical companies in the world by following a passive management strategy that tracks the total return performance of the S&P Pharmaceutical Select Industry index.

Analyst upgrades:

• Societe General upgraded BASF AG (OTC: BASFY) to Buy from Hold. The firm believes the bad news is out and that BASF has a strong market position.
  
• Pali Capital upgraded Hot Topic (NASDAQ: HOTT) to Buy from Neutral based on the ongoing merchandise catalyst, the opportunity to reclaim the mainstream kid and closing underperforming stores, which create the most favorable conditions in the last 5+ years.
  
• Stanford upgraded L-1 Identity (NYSE: ID) to Buy from Hold on valuation, and the firm sees little risk to the company from the Obama Administration.
• Gymboree (NASDAQ: GYMB) and Windstream (WIN) were raised to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
  
• Doral Financial (NYSE: DRL) was upgraded at B. Riley to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Alumina (NYSE: AWC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Analyst downgrades:

• Credit Suisse downgraded Targanta (NASDAQ: TARG) to Underperform from Outperform following the FDA Panel's rejection of Oritavancin.
  
• Citigroup downgraded BASF AG (OTC: BASFY) to Sell from Hold and sees no reason to own the stock following the company's profit warning. Shares were also downgraded at WestLB to Hold from Add.
  
• Deutsche Bank downgraded shares of Amedisys (NASDAQ: AMED) to Hold from Buy and lowered its target to $53 from $75 on concerns over the company's deteriorating A/R aging trends.
• VeriFone Holdings (NYSE: PAY) and Navios Maritime (NYSE: NMM) were lowered to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.
  
• NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM) was downgraded at Citigroup to Hold from Buy.

Analyst initiations:

• Needham expects shares of Cepheid (NASDAQ: CPHD) to be driven by continued market penetration in the hospital acquired infection market, new test introductions, GeneXpert Infinity sales, and molecular diagnostics growth from sales outside of traditional molecular testing areas. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $21 target.
  
• Needham also initiated Gen-Probe (NASDAQ: GPRO) with a Hold rating and expects market share gains for the company when PANTHER is approved in 2010/2011.
  
• William Blair believes Harbin Electric (NASDAQ: HRBN) is an "interesting" opportunity for exposure to rapid growth in infrastructure within the People's Republic of China. The firm started shares with a Market Perform rating.
• Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) was initiated with a Buy rating and $11 target at UBS.
  
• NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Janney Montgomery.
  
• Ener1 (NYSE: HEV) was assumed at JMP Securities with an Outperform rating and $9 target.
  

Today was another relief trading day on word that Congress has reached a tentative approval of a bipartisan $700 billion financial bailout package. It definitely wasn't from the slew of bad economic data this morning. That was just ugly. Despite poor economic data, bond yields rose as the bailout package will end the flight to quality we witnessed lately.

Below are today's unofficial closing bell levels:
DJIA 11,022.06 +196.89 +1.82%
NASDAQ 2,186.57 +30.89 +1.43%
S&P500 1,209.18 +23.31 +1.97%
10YR T-Note 3.862% +0.091%
52-week lows
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American International Group (NYSE: AIG) was up most of the day, but ex-Chairman Hank Greenberg filed to sell shares in the open market because of personal liquidity issues. Shares were up 19% but had fallen all the way down to almost 10% at $2.97 on this news. So much for him putting together a hostile rescue package of his own.

Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) was up almost 3% at $12.96 right before the close after it received marketing approval from the FDA for its TAXUS Express2 Atom Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System this morning. This stock is so far down from prior highs that any good news is welcome.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) managed to gain 4% to $25.60 right before the close despite its earnings warning hitting the stock early today. This was already factored in and should have been anticipated. It is keeping its AAA debt rating, keeping its dividend, and suspending buybacks to preserve liquidity.

Northwest Airlines Corporation (NYSE: NWA) and soon to be parent Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) approved their merger today with something around 98% to 99% of the votes combined in favor of the deal. Unfortunately it had no bearing on the stocks, as Northwest shares were actually down 1% at the close.

AngioDynamics (NASDAQ: ANGO) provides medical devices used by interventional radiologists and surgeons for the minimally invasive treatment of cancer and peripheral vascular disease. The firm's oncology product line includes image-guided radiofrequency ablation devices, used to kill cancer cells by heating and destroying them. The peripheral vascular line includes a variety of instruments to clear and drain non-cardiac arteries. The company's products are sold in more than thirty countries. Competitors include Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX).

The firm pleased investors late last month, when it reported fiscal Q4 EPS of 41 cents and revenues of $46.8 million. Analysts had been looking for 17 cents and $45.6 million. Management also guided FY09 EPS to 68 cents (64 cent consensus) and FY09 revenues to $205-$210 million ($201.32M consensus).

St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ) designs, manufactures, and distributes medical devices for heart-related and neurological conditions. The firm's Cardiac Rhythm Management segment makes pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators, to regulate heart rhythm. The Neuromodulation unit develops pacemaker-like implantable systems to treat chronic, intractable pain, and other nervous system disorders. The Cardiovascular division offers therapies and technologies for treating people with cardiovascular and peripheral vascular disease. The Atrial Fibrillation segment develops products to diagnose, treat, and seek a cure for atrial fibrillation. Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) is a major competitor.

The company pleased investors last week, when it reported Q2 EPS of 60 cents and revenues of $1.14 billion. Analysts had been expecting 55 cents and $1.06 billion. The CEO noted that revenue exceeded guidance in every business category. Management also guided Q3 EPS to 56-58 cents (53 cent consensus) and FY08 EPS to $2.28-$2.33 ($2.19 consensus).

Merit Medical Systems (NASDAQ: MMSI) develops and manufactures proprietary disposable medical devices used in interventional and diagnostic procedures, particularly in cardiology and radiology. Offerings include the catheters, guide wires, inflation devices, needles, and tubing used in heart stent procedures, pacemaker placements, and angioplasties. As well, Merit makes products for endoscopy, dialysis, and other therapeutic and diagnostic procedures. Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) are major competitors.

The firm pleased investors last week, when it guided Q2 EPS to 19-21 cents and Q2 revenues to about $57.4 million. Analysts had been expecting 16 cents and $55.77 million. Gross margins for the quarter were estimated at 42.7%, which would be a 500 basis point improvement from Q2'07. CL King subsequently upgraded the shares to "accumulate".

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) got approval for its new drug-coated stent. The products are used to open clogged arteries, often in the place of by-pass surgery. The field has been dominated by deeply troubled medical device company Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX). It looks that the weakened company is in for much more pain.

According to The Wall Street Journal, ABT "received regulatory approval for its Xience V drug-coated stent, which is expected to be the top seller in the roughly $2 billion U.S. market because it appears to be more effective than rival devices." Boston Scientific will sell the new Abbott product, but with 40% of the revenue going to its rival, it is hard to see how that is a good deal.

BSX has been beaten by competition at almost every turn. It took on tremendous debt when it bought medical device company Guidant. It faced trouble when some Guidant products hit quality control issues. Boston Scientific stents came under criticism a year ago, when medical research questioned how effective they were.

BSX traded at almost $45 in 2004. It is now at about $12. With new competition and a bad balance sheet, that is not likely to change much.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

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