Analyst Upgrades

• Advance Auto Parts (AAP) was upgraded to Perform from Underperform at Oppenheimer.
• Macquarie upgraded Gen-Probe (GPRO) and Beckman Coulter (BEC) to neutral from underperform.
• Tyco (TYC) was upgraded to neutral from reduce at Nomura.
• BofA/Merrill upgraded Cousins Properties (CUZ) to buy from underperform.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded Energy Conversion (ENER) to equal weight from underweight.
• Thermo Fisher (TMO) was upgraded to buy from hold at Auriga.

On Wednesday, Charles Schwab Corp. (NASDAQ: SCHW) reported that its lower first-quarter earnings easily topped analysts' estimates, and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) said its higher first-quarter profit edged past Wall Street expectations. Shares of Schwab surged while those of Abbott Labs fell Wednesday.

San Francisco-based brokerage and investment manager Charles Schwab said it earned $218 million, or 19 cents per share, for the quarter, as compared to $305 million, or 26 cents per share, in the same period of the previous year. Total revenue fell 15% year over year to $1.11 billion.

Among companies reporting earnings on Wednesday were broker Charles Schwab Corp. (NASDAQ: SCHW), lender Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC), and American Airlines parent, AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR).

Charles Schwab reported that its fourth-quarter profit fell 34% from the same period a year ago, in part due to the sale of its former U.S. Trust wealth management unit. The company earned $308 million, or 26 cents per share, down from $467 million, or 37 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue rose 23% to $1.35 billion from $1.1 billion a year ago. The consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had been earnings for the quarter of 27 cents per share on revenue of $1.32 billion. Shares fell in early trading Wednesday but closed up 1.56% to $22.81.

Wells Fargo said that it earned $1.36 billion, or 41 cents per share, for the fourth quarter, its lowest quarterly profit in years. That was 38% below net income of $2.18 billion, or 64 cents per share, in the same period of 2006. The results were in line with earnings estimates of analysts, who had already factored in charges and loan loss reserves that Wells Fargo announced in November. The company's revenue grew 8% in the fourth quarter to $10.21 billion from $9.41 billion a year ago. Shares rose 3.51% Wednesday to close at $27.42.

AMR posted a loss of $69 million, or 28 cents per share, for the fourth quarter, due to rising fuel prices and weather disruptions. The company had a profit of $17 million, or 7 cents per share, during the same period a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had expected the carrier to lose 75 cents per share, but that did not include one-time gains from the sale of communications and engineering firm ARINC. Revenue crept higher during the quarter to $5.68 billion, from $5.4 billion a year ago, which was in line with analysts' expectations. Shares rose 3.03% Wednesday to $13.60.

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