Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded SAP (NYSE: SAP) to Buy from Hold on expectations license declines will trough in Q2 and margins will expand going forward due to cost control and price increases. The firm has a $46 price target on shares.
• BofA/Merrill upgraded STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) to Buy from Underperform on expectations the company will benefit from improving industry fundamentals in 2010.
• Citigroup upgraded Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) to Buy from Hold to reflect the firm's positive copper outlook, as well as valuation following the recent pullback in shares. The firm has a $58 price target on the stock.
• Phototronics (NASDAQ: PLAB) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• Anglo American (NASDAQ: AAUK) was raised to Hold from Sell at RBS.
• Peabody Energy (NASDAQ: BTU) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.

A new earnings reporting season kicks off this coming week with the quarterly report from Alcoa, the first Dow Jones industrial to report. But investors looking for early signs about the first quarter will be disappointed in what they see from the aluminum producer, assuming that analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are neither too optimistic or too pessimistic about those results.

Analyst upgrades:

• ING upgraded Roche (OTC: RHHBY) to Buy from Hold as it believes Roche will not pay more than $100/share for Genentech (NYSE: DNA) and that the Avastin adjuvant data due April 2009 provides significant upside potential.
  
• Oppenheimer upgraded Motorola (NYSE: MOT) to Outperform from Perform on valuation as it believes sentiment is at an all-time low and the stock has limited downside. The firm set a $5 target on shares.
  
• Morgan Stanley upgraded Comerica (NYSE: CMA) to Equal Weight from Underweight citing valuation that adequately reflects credit deterioration in its commercial-heavy loan portfolio and aggressive government action.
• Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ: CAKE) and Nucor (NYSE: NUE) were upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
  
• Pinnacle Entertainment (NYSE: PNK) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.

Analyst upgrades:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of Camden Property (NYSE: CPT) to Hold from Sell on valuation and believes the company has improved its liquidity position. Despite the upgrade, the firm lowered its target price to $21 from $25.
  
• Goldman added Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) to its Conviction Buy List as it is now the sole dominant retailer in consumer electronics and expects Best Buy's margins to benefit from Circuit City's demise.
  
• Molson Coors (NYSE: TAP) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan as it finds the valuation attractive and sees a number of long-term fundamental positive catalysts. The firm has a $47.50 target on shares.
• United Rentals (NYSE: URI) and Illinois Tool Works (NYSE: ITW) were upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
  
• ProLogis (NYSE: PLD) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.

Analyst downgrades:

• Oppenheimer downgraded Global Traffic Network (NASDAQ: GNET) to Perform from Outperform following the company's weaker than expected Q2 results and lowered its target price to $6.25 from $7.
  
• Friedman Billings downgraded BankAtlantic (NYSE: BBX) to Underperform from Market Perform to reflect the deterioration of both the company's credit and capital in Q4. The firm lowered its target price to $1 from $5.
  
• RBC Capital downgraded AbitibiBowater (NYSE: ABH) to Underperform from Sector Perform and lowered its target to 50 cents from $2.00 following the company's debt refinancing announcement.
• Lions Gate (NYSE: LGF) was cut to Market Weight from Overweight at Thomas Weisel.
  
• Ctrip.com (NASDAQ: CTRP) was downgraded at Goldman to Sell from Neutral.
  
• Molson Coors (NYSE: TAP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America/Merrill.

Analyst initiations:

• Oppenheimer initiated Chattem (NASDAQ: CHTT) with an Outperform rating and believes the company's business model is well suited for the current uncertain consumer environment. The firm has an $80 target on the stock.
• Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) was initiated at BMO Capital with a Market Perform rating and $30 target.
  
• Anglo American (NASDAQ: AAUK) was assumed with a Sell rating at Societe Generale.
  
• Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY) was started at UBS with a Buy rating.

Earnings reports continue to dribble in as the quarter winds down. Much of the attention this week will be on homebuilders KB Home (NYSE: KBH) and Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) as investors look for any sign that the housing sector has bottomed (home sales numbers are also due out this week; see below). Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial anticipate that both companies will report that they narrowed their losses in the most recent quarter.

KB Home's expected $1.25 per share loss, on revenue of $725.5 million, compares to the previous quarter loss of $3.30 and to a year-ago loss of $6.19. However, KB Home's losses in the past few quarters have been deeper than expected. The Los Angeles-based homebuilder's long-range earnings growth forecast is 10.5%, less than the S&P 500. Analysts continue to recommend holding KB Home, and have for at least 120 days. Shares, however, reached a new 52-week high of $31.69 on Friday, and they are up 10.5% year to date.

Lennar is expected to post a loss of 52 cents per share, on revenue of $1.1 billion. That compares to the previous quarter's per-share loss of 76 cents and to a year-ago loss of $3.25. While Lennar also has tended in the past few quarters to miss expectations, the Miami-based company managed a positive surprise in the first quarter of 2008. Lennar's long-range earnings growth forecast is 10.3%, about the same as KB Home's. Analysts also recommend holding Lennar. Friday, shares of Lennar also reached a 52-week high, $27.75, but they are down 6.4% year to date.

Morgan Stanley upgrades Citigroup (NYSE:C) to "equal weight" from "underweight", according to Briefing.com. The news service also reports that Deutsche Bank downgraded McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) from "buy" to "hold".

Standard & Poor's added Hansen Natural Corp (NASDAQ:HANS) and Chattem (NASDQ:CHTT) to its list of mid-sized companies that show the "highest growth characteristics.", according to the AP.

Boeing (NYSE:BA) Cut to Neutral at Cowen & Co, according to 24/7 Wall St. The financial website also reports AT&T (NYSE:T) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan

Douglas A. McIntyre

Monday, April 7

• PDUFA date for Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY)'s supplemental Biologics License Application for Orencia for the treatment of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis.
• Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 5pm.

Tuesday, April 8

• Chattem Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTT) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 9:00am.
• FOMC to release minutes of the March 18th meeting at 2:00pm.
• Embraer-Empr Bras Aeronautica (ADR) (NYSE: ERJ) conference call to announce new midsize & midlight executive jet concepts at 6:00pm.

The earnings crunch rolls on, and here are a few of the highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Activision Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) earnings soared on popularity of Guitar Hero and other game franchises.
• Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) beat earnings expectations and offered revised guidance.
• Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) beat estimates despite lower profits due to restructuring costs.
• Chattem Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTT) beat estimates and raised its guidance.
• Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) met estimates but a weak forecast raised concerns.
• Dionex Corp. (NASDAQ: DNEX) beat estimates on strength in petrochemical and food/beverage markets.
• Electronic Data Systems Corp. (NYSE: EDS) earnings fell, helping to raise concerns about tech stocks.
• Flextronics International Ltd. (NASDAQ: FLEX) beat estimates and affirmed its outlook.
• Gannett Inc. (NYSE: GCI) missed fourth-quarter earnings estimates on lower ad revenue.
• Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) missed expectations due to rising construction costs.
• MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) forecast it would beat earnings expectations by as much as 10 cents a share.
• Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (NASDAQ: ODFL) beat revenue estimates and raised its guidance.
• RealNetworks Inc. (NASDAQ: RNWK) warned it would miss first-quarter and full-year expectations.
• Silicon Laboratories (NASDAQ: SLAB) beat expectations and raised its guidance.
• THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) posted disappointing results that included cancelled game franchises.
• Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) met estimates and announced restructuring plans (see transcript).
• Unilever (NYSE: UL) fourth-quarter net income tanked on a sell-off of its European frozen food business.
• Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) posted better-than-expected results on gains in TV and theme parks.

Chattem (NASDAQ: CHTT) provides over-the-counter drugs, personal care products and dietary supplements. Offerings include such pain treatments as dental analgesic Benzodent, topical analgesic Aspercreme, muscle pain reliever Flexall, menstrual symptom reliever Pamprin, analgesic Icy Hot and itch medicine Cortizone-10. The company also makes Melatonex and Unisom sleep aids, Gold Bond medicated powder, Selsun Blue dandruff shampoo, ACT mouthwash and BullFrog sunblock. Chattem sells its products in eighty countries, through such merchandisers as CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), Safeway (NYSE: SWY) and Walgreen (NYSE: WAG).

The company surprised investors last week, when it reported Q4 EPS of 76 cents and revenues of $100.6 million. Analysts had been expecting 65 cents and $100.5 million. Management also guided FY08 EPS to $4.00-$4.20 ($3.83 consensus).

When it comes to O.T.C. drug products, folks are often surprised to learn that a single Tennessee outfit is responsible for nearly thirty of the best known names. It was founded 128 years ago, as the Chattanooga Medicine Company.

Chattem (NASDAQ: CHTT) provides over-the-counter drugs, personal care products and dietary supplements. Offerings include such pain treatments as dental analgesic Benzodent, topical analgesic Aspercreme, muscle pain reliever Flexall, menstrual symptom reliever Pamprin and analgesic Icy Hot. The company also makes sleep aid Melatonex, medicated powder Gold Bond and Mudd facial masks. Chattem sells its products in eighty countries, through such merchandisers as CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), Safeway (NYSE: SWY) and Walgreen (NYSE: WAG).

The company surprised investors last week, when it reported Q3 EPS of 83 cents and revenues of $109 million. Analysts had been expecting 74 cents and $106 million. Management also guided FY07 EPS to $2.96-3.06 ($2.95 consensus) and FY08 EPS to $3.69-3.89 ($3.56 consensus).

People are often a little vague about who makes their favorite O.T.C. drug products. There is an outfit in Tennessee that is responsible for nearly thirty of the best known brand names. It was founded as the Chattanooga Medicine Company, in 1879.

Chattem Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTT) provides over-the-counter drugs, personal care products and dietary supplements. Offerings include such pain treatments as dental analgesic Benzodent, topical analgesic Aspercreme, muscle pain reliever Flexall, menstrual symptom reliever Pamprin and analgesic Icy Hot. The company also makes sleep aid Melatonex, medicated powder Gold Bond and Mudd facial masks. Chattem sells its products in eighty countries, through such merchandisers as CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), Kroger (NYSE: KR), Safeway (NYSE: SWY), Target (NYSE: TGT) and Walgreen (NYSE: WAG). Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) are major competitors.

The company surprised investors earlier in the week, when it reported Q2 EPS of 85 cents and revenues of $113.0 million. Analysts had been expecting 77 cents and $111.6 million. Management also guided FY07 EPS to $2.81-$3.00, versus Street consensus of $2.91. The news kept CHTT shares cycling through a positive sixteen week trading channel. The price is currently consolidating at the base of that channel, where oversold CCI and Stochastic technical parameters suggest the potential for a rise back toward the top. Correspondence of the stock's 50-day moving average to the base of the channel backs the rebound notion.

Brokers recommend the shares with three "strong buys," one "buy," six "holds" and one "sell." Analysts expect a 22% growth rate, through the next year. The CHTT Sales Growth rate (42.32%), EPS Growth rate (49.12%), Operating Margin (27.72%), Net Profit Margin (13.88%) and Revenue per Employee ($835.5k) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions own about 95% of the outstanding shares. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between $31.77 and $67.55. A stop-loss of $55.00 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.

Very often, folks have no idea what companies own and produce their favorite brand name products. When it comes to OTC drugs, there is Chattanooga, Tennessee firm responsible for a whole stack of the best-known names.

Chattem Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTT) provides over-the-counter drugs, personal care products and dietary supplements. Offerings include such pain treatments as dental analgesic Benzodent, topical analgesic Aspercreme, muscle pain reliever Flexall, menstrual symptom reliever Pamprin and analgesic Icy Hot. The company also makes sleep aid Melatonex, medicated powder Gold Bond and Mudd facial masks. In 2006, the firm acquired the Balmex, Kaopectate, Unisom, Cortizone, and Act brands from Johnson & Johnson. Chattem sells its products through mass merchandisers, drug stores, drug wholesalers and food stores, in about 80 countries worldwide.

The company surprised investors last week, when it reported Q1 EPS of 71 cents and revenues of $100.8 million. Analysts had been expecting 61 cents and $101 million. Management also raised FY07 EPS guidance from $2.66-$2.91 to $2.71-$2.96 ($2.77 consensus), citing the strength of its base business and the smooth integration of acquired brands for the favorable outlook. The stock popped through 30-day and 50-day moving average resistance on the news and has since been consolidating the gain in a bullish "pennant" pattern. Prices frequently exit pennants moving in the same direction they were traveling when they entered them. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the shares with three "strong buys," one "buy," six "holds" and two "sells." Analysts expect a 22% growth rate, through the next year. The CHTT Sales Growth rate (20.00%), EPS Growth rate (20.34%), Operating Margin (25.91%), Net Profit Margin (13.86%) and Revenue per Employee ($755.61k) compare favorably with sector and S&P 500 averages.

Institutions own about 87% of the outstanding shares. Over the past 12 months, the stock has traded between $27.99 and $60.89. A stop-loss of $51.40 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Cadbury Schweppes ADS (CSG) and Buckeye Partners (BPL) were today's most notable rating changes.

• Wachovia started Cadbury Schweppes ADS (NYSE: CSG) with an Outperform rating. They said Cadbury's long-term global confectionery opportunities are among the best in the industry and the recent buyout of its U.S. Dr. Pepper/Seven-Up bottling unit provides high-leverage cash flow.

• Buckeye Partners Ltd (NYSE: BPL) was initiated with an Underperform rating and a $48 target at RBC based on valuation.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Stanford initiated AudioCodes Ltd (NASDAQ: AUDC) with a Buy rating and $15 target. The firm believes AudioCodes is an inexpensive play on the migration to packet networks.

• Stifel initiated William Partners LP (NYSE: WPZ) with a Buy rating and $46.50 target.

• AG Edwards started BioMarin Pharmaceutical inc (NASDAQ: BMRN) with a Buy rating and $25 target.

• Pacer International Inc (NASDAQ: PACR) was initiated with a Hold rating at Stifel.

• Morgan Stanley started Lyondell Chemical Company (NYSE: LYO) with an Overweight rating and $38 target.

• Buckingham initiated Chattem Inc (NASDAQ: CHTT) with an Accumulate rating and $64 target, citing high margins, cash flow and reduced debt.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).