Historically, North Carolina was well-known for tobacco, furniture production, and textiles. Though the Tar Heel state is still a leading textiles employer, both textiles and furniture production have been diminished by offshoring; North Carolina is one of the states most affected by job loss to other parts of the world. The state also remains a leader in tobacco production, but concerns about the loss of government subsidies have prompted many farmers to switch to other crops or to quit farming altogether.

Today, Charlotte, North Carolina, is known as the second largest financial center in the U.S., and the Raleigh-Durham area is a tech and research district. Carlisle Cos. (NYSE: CSL), Commscope Inc. (NYSE: CTV), and Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) can be found in the state.

The Forbes 2007 list of the 100 best mid cap stocks included two from North Carolina. One of those is Charlotte-based Carlisle, a manufacturer of such diverse products as brakes for heavy-duty trucks, roofing materials, food service equipment, and aerospace cabling assemblies. Carlisle appointed a new CEO in June, and in August it marked its 31st consecutive year of dividend increases. Carlisle's five-year EPS growth rate of 19.4% is better than its industry average, but less than the S&P 500. Earnings missed Wall Street estimates in the first three quarters of 2007, the company reporting 84 cents per share in the recent third quarter report, missing expectations by three cents, but 14 cents more than in the same period last year. The share price began to slide even before Carlisle trimmed its full-year guidance again in October, to open at $39.43 on Friday, down from the 52-week high of $51.57 in August.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Research in Motion Ltd (RIMM), BE Aerospace Inc (BEAV) and Burger King Holdings (BKC) were some of today's more notable initiations.

• JMP Securities started Research in Motion Ltd (NASDAQ: RIMM) with a Market Perform rating as the firm has concerns about RIMM's enterprise-focused prospects in the hits driven, high-end consumer market.

• Wachovia initiated BE Aerospace Inc (NYSE: BEAV) with an Outperform rating, expecting significant growth in its core businesses.

• AG Edwards started Burger King Holdings (NYSE: BKC) with a Buy rating and $25 target. The firm believes Burger King has improved fundamentals and robust future earnings potential after years of turnaround efforts.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Raymond James initiated AnnTaylor Stores (NYSE: ANN) with an Outperform rating, Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ: URBN) with a Strong Buy rating and Charlotte Russe Holding (NASDAQ: CHIC) with a Market Perform rating.

• Caris started Medtronic, Inc (NASDAQ: MDT) with a Buy rating and $61 target.

• ThinkEquity initiated Gaming Partners International (NASDAQ: GPIC) with a Buy rating.

• Morgan Stanley initiated Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) with an Equal-Weight rating.

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