To get a valuation juiced up, all it takes is two bidders. And, that's what Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP) got. The data deduplication company has been the target of two rival bidders: NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) and EMC (NYSE: EMC).

Well, today the wrangling stopped -- with EMC as the victor. The company has agreed to shell out $2.4 billion for Data Domain.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing, or services reading, came in under the positive levels again, but these were very close to positive if you removed that employment portion of the number. Today was a day where commodities were weak and overseas markets were weak more than anything. We still think investors are trying to trim down positions and temper expectations for earnings season starting this week and next.

Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,324.87 +44.13 (0.53%)
S&P 500 898.70 +2.28 (0.25%)
Nasdaq 1,787.40 -9.12 (-0.51%)

Top Analyst Upgrades
Top Analyst Downgrades

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TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says these stocks have become too expensive without takeovers and a more robust economy.

One after another after another, these software charts are amazing. And, I might add, a bit scary. How did McAfee (NYSE: MFE) (Cramer's Take) make that kind of move just on security software? Didn't Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) (Cramer's Take) just say -- admittedly for the 4 millionth time -- that it was going to give away free anti-virus software? Or Citrix (NASDAQ: CTXS) (Cramer's Take)? What's that all about? How could it return to those levels?

There were rumors of a Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) (Cramer's Take) takeover a week or two ago, and, amazingly, when it didn't come true, the stock hung in.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded MDS Inc. (NYSE: MDZ) to Buy from Hold on valuation as it believes shares are pricing in a "worst case" scenario at current levels. The firm keeps a $6.50 target on the stock.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded Continental (NYSE: CAL) to Overweight from Neutral on valuation as it believes the recent sell-off is overdone. The firm keeps a $13 price target on the stock.
• Thomas Weisel is positive on Allergan's (NYSE: AGN) diverse product portfolio, global infrastructure, vertical integration, and deep pipeline. The firm upgraded shares to Overweight from Market Weight and has a $54 target on the stock.
• NetLogic (NASDAQ: NETL) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Piper.
  
• Dover (NYSE: DOV) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.
  
• Map Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: MAPP) was upgraded at Argus to Hold from Sell.

For NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP), yesterday was fairly eventful. Not only did the company announce its Q4 earnings but also a $1.5 billion deal to purchase rival storage maker, Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP). The transaction comes to $25 per share.

No doubt, NetApp needs to find growth, as CFOs tighten information technology (IT) budgets. Keep in mind that Q4 revenues fell 6.2% to $879.6 million.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Abiomed (NASDAQ: ABMD) to Hold from Underperform on valuation as it believes concerns over the company's Impella heart pump are priced in at current levels. The firm lowered its target price to $7 from $8.
  
• Suntrust upgraded Somanetics (NASDAQ: SMTS) to Neutral from Reduce. The firm believes most of the risk is out of Somanetics shares and that the Q1 report could be a positive catalyst.
  
• Banc of America/Merrill upgraded shares of Telecom Italia (NYSE: TI) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and believes the company's revenue trends are improving.
• China Petroleum & Chemical (NYSE: SNP) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• Hexcel (NYSE: HXL) and Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI) were upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.

With the global economy ailing, companies are scrambling to cut costs. But some companies continue to post hefty growth rates.

Just look at Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP), which develops next-generation storage systems. For Q3, the company saw its revenues spike 134% to $75 million (it was a 23% sequential growth rate). Net income was $3.2 million or $0.05 per share. Operating cash flow came to $22 million.

Then again, Data Domain continues to rack up customers, with 355 new accounts in Q3. In all, the company has more than 2,500 customers.

Data Domain is getting lots of traction for its new product, called the DD690 (which is going beyond stuff like back-ups to more advance storage activities). The result has been that average selling prices have gone from $108,000 to $131,000.

Over the past few years, I've had a chance to talk to Data Domain's CEO, Frank Slootman. He has always mentioned that the storage industry is in the midst of a major change, and that his company was leading the way. Often, such statements are bluster. But so far, Data Domain's results show that the company is certainly riding a major growth wave.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Streetsmart Guide to Short Selling: Techniques the Pros Use to Profit in Any Market. He is also the founder of BizEquity, a valuation website.

Analyst upgrades:

• JMP Securities upgraded Vertex Pharma (NASDAQ: VRTX) to Outperform from Market Perform following better-than-expected interim data for telaprevir.
  
• Lazard Capital upgraded shares of Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) to Buy from Hold on valuation after their physician survey indicated solid sales growth in the company's MS franchise.
  
• Calyon upgraded Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP) to Add from Neutral based on positive channel checks and valuation.
• Goldman added Buckeye GP (NYSE: BGH) to the Conviction Buy List.
  
• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) was upgraded to Hold from Sell and Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) was raised to Hold from Reduce at WestLB.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Cowen Group (NASDAQ: COWN) to OUtperform from Market Perform.

Analyst downgrades:

• Deutsche Bank downgraded shares of Lloyds TSB Group (NYSE: LYG) to Sell from Hold as they believe loan loss risk will outweigh synergies from the acquisition of HBOS (HBOOY).
  
• Citigroup downgraded shares of National Financial Partners (NYSE: NFP) to Hold from Buy and removed the stock from the Top Picks Live List after the company announced July and August revenues and said pressure continues. The firm lowered their target to $20 from $28.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Data Domain, ESCO Technologies and NetApp were today's noteworthy initiations:

• ThinkPanmure said Data Domain's (NASDAQ:DDUP) installed base, strong product, technology lead, and partner network provides a sustainable competitive advantage in the high-growth market for capacity-optimized data storage powered by de-duplication software. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $30 target.
  
• Friedman Billings expects ESCO Tech's (NYSE:ESE) utility solutions segment to drive sales growth as secular demand for advanced metering gains traction. The firm started shares with an Outperform rating and $60 target.
  
• Merriman initiated NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) with a Neutral rating. The firm is cautious on the name as the company seeks to reaccelerate top-line growth in a challenging economic environment in North America.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Citizens Comm (NYSE:CZN) was assumed with a Buy rating and $13 target at Stanford.
  
• R.H. Donnelley (NYSE:RHD) was initiated at JP Morgan with a Neutral rating.
  
• CIBC started FirstService (NASDAQ:FSRV) with a Sector Outperformer rating.

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

• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) posted its biggest quarterly loss since its creation in 2006.
• Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) missed earnings estimates despite revenue up 50%.
• Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) fourth-quarter profit soared on strong sales of Avonex and Tysabri.
• Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) reported record profits due to surging oil prices.
• CNET Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: CNET) revenue rose but the forecast was not encouraging.
• Data Domain Inc. (NASDAQ: DDUP) third-quarter revenues spiked due to aggressive overseas expansion.
• Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN) benefitted from overseas growth, which offset weak holiday sales.
• GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) warned that 2008 earnings would be affected by competition from generics.
• Harris Corp. (NYSE: HRS) beat estimates and raised its guidance.
• Micros Systems (NASDAQ: MCRS) beat expectations and offered guidance in line with estimates.
• News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) fell short of earnings expectations despite strength in MySpace and Fox News.
• PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP) results met estimates and it announced further share buybacks.
• Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) beat estimates and raised its guidance.
• SiRF Technology Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRF) missed expectations due to a seasonal decline.
• Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) expects to report its seventh straight quarterly revenue decline.
• Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) attributed solid earnings to growth in China, Russia, emerging markets.
• Wendy's International Inc. (NYSE: WEN) missed earnings estimates, despite beating revenue forecast.
• Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) posted results just ahead of Wall Street estimates.
• Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) posted solid results on overseas growth and share buybacks.

"We need to grow pretty fast," said Frank Slootman, the CEO of Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP), in an interview with me. "In the storage industry, you can only be a small company for a short period of time."

If history is any indication, he's spot-on. That is, the storage industry tends to be a winners'-take-all proposition.

The good news for Data Domain is that the company is getting bigger. In fiscal Q4, revenues spiked 151% to $44.9 million over the past year. In fact, there was a 40% increase from the prior quarter. In all, the company posted revenues of $123.6 million last year, which was a hefty 166% increase.

Basically, Data Domain is capitalizing on a megatrend; that is, the transition from tape storage to digital storage. The company calls its technology "deduplication," which is quite efficient and cost-effective.

After just a few years, the customer count now stands at 1,537 (there were 341 new customers in the past quarter). What's more, Data Domain is aggressively expanding into foreign markets, with offices in 22 countries.

And, while there's lots of talk of a slowdown in IT (information technology), Slootman isn't seeing it. "Storage is not a category you can get rid of," he said. "It's something you need.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

One of the hot IPOs this year has been Data Domain Inc. (NASDAQ: DDUP). The company develops data backup technologies, a hot area that is drawing lots of competition.

One interesting rival is ExaGrid Systems, which announced a $20 million venture round this week. The investors include Lehman Brothers Venture Partners (NASDAQ: LEH), Highland Capital Partners, and Sigma Partners.

With the money, ExaGrid plans to expand its business, especially into international markets. In fact, the company believes it will have enough capital to become cash-flow positive.

True, ExaGrid's technology is much better than tape technology (which doesn't seem that hard). But, at the same time, the company has made it easy to use, which is critical for its small to medium size business customers.

Like Data Domain, ExaGrid is growing at a fantastic rate – apparently 40% quarter-over-quarter growth. And, by having Lehman as an investor, it's probably a good bet we'll see ExaGrid hit the public markets at some point.

Visit DealProfiles.com to check out other venture capital transactions.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Spectra Energy (SEP), ComScore (SCOR) and Data Domain (DDUP) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Spectra Energy (NYSE: SEP) was initiated with a Buy rating and $32.50 target at Citigroup, with an Overweight rating and $32 target at Lehman Brothers and with an Overweight rating at Wachovia. Citigroup believes SEP provides investors above-average distribution growth driven by stable cash flows with little or no direct exposure to commodity prices. Wachovia is positive on SEP given its multi-year growth profile and high quality assets.

• ComScore (NASDAQ: SCOR) was initiated with an Outperform rating and $28 target at FBRC on valuation. The company was also initiated at Jefferies with a Hold rating and $25 target, citing valuation, although the firm believes the company is well positioned to benefit from the market demand for Web traffic data/analytics. Deutsche Bank initiated shares of ComScore with a Buy rating and $28 target.

• Data Domain (NASDAQ: DDUP) was started at Pacific Crest with an Outperform rating and $30 target and the firm expects growth to exceed 50% annually for at least the next two years.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• ThinkEquity started shares of Altair Nanotechnologies (NASDAQ: ALTI) with a Buy rating and $6 target.

• ThinkEquity transferred coverage of Blue Coat Systems (NASDAQ: BCSI) with a Buy rating and raised its target to $63 from $51.

• Stifel started shares of ICT Group (NASDAQ: ICTG) with a Buy rating and $20 target.

• B. Riley started shares of Charles & Colvard (NASDAQ: CTHR) with a Buy rating and $8 target.

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

Just call it the last equity blast before summer. Wall Street's equity market offers a full schedule this week, as lead managers and companies attempt to capture as much buy-side demand as possible a week before the shorter 4th of July week, which is traditionally the start of a lighter syndicate period on Wall Street.

All told, 11 IPOs and 8 Secondaries are on the docket. Those deals tentatively scheduled to price include:

IPOs:

Tuesday

• GSC Acquistion (GGA), a 15M-share IPO for this business financing company. Ladenburg, Thalman & Co. and I-Bankers Securities are the lead managers. Filing price: $10.00.
• Spectra Energy Partners LP (SEP), a 10M-share IPO for this natural gas MLP. Citigroup and Lehman Brothers are the lead managers. Filing range: $19.00-$21.00.