Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded shares of Lennar (NYSE:LEN) to Buy from Hold on valuation as they believe the recent sell-off on concerns of fraud is overdone. The firm thinks the allegations made by Barry Minkow/Fraud Discovery Institute are unfounded and has an $11 target on shares.
  
• Merriman upgraded Nautilus Group (NYSE:NLS) to Neutral from Sell after meeting with management to reflect increased optimism on the company's turnaround.
  
• Baird upgraded Leap Wireless (NYSE:LEAP) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation and strong subscriber trends.
  
• Transocean (NYSE:RIG) was added to Goldman's Conviction Buy List.
  
• Pearson PLC (NYSE:PSO) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.
  
• Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) was lifted to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

• JP Morgan downgraded Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ:BBBY) to Underweight from Neutral and lowered their target to $20 from $26 as they believe potential benefits from the Linens' N Things closing are being overstated and that the risk/reward is unfavorable at current levels.
  
• Keefe Bruyette downgraded Citizens Republic (NASDAQ:CRBC) to Market Perform from Outperform and cut their target to $3 from $7 to reflect the company's lower capital position.
  
• UBS downgraded Energizer (NYSE:ENR) to Sell from Neutral and lowered their target to $40 from $48 citing signs of a battery price war, Wal-Mart's (NYSE:WMT) reduction in space allocation, and the company's cuts in investment.
  
• Chevron (NYSE:CVX) was removed from Goldman's Conviction Buy List.
  
• MetroPCS (NYSE:PCS) was lowered to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital.
  
• Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) was cut to Sell from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.

• Global Hunter believes Pep Boys (NYSE:PBY) is well-positioned to benefit from increased demand for replacement parts and maintenance services as new car purchases are deferred. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $5.50 target.
  
• Jefferies started Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE:SNY) with an Underperform rating and sees downside risk to the stock from the potential introduction of Lovenox generics in the U.S.
  
• Merriman assumed Alter Nrg (NYSE:ANRGF) with a Neutral rating and recommends waiting on the sidelines pending increased visibility on the company's gasification projects.
  
• JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) was re-initiated with a Buy rating at Goldman. Shares were also added to Goldman's Conviction Buy List.
  
• Hudson City Bancorp (NYSE:HCBK) was assumed with an Overweight rating and $15 target at Barclays.
  
• DG FastChannel (NASDAQ:DGIT) was initiated at BWS Financial with a Strong Buy rating and $30 target.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: SonicWALL, DG FastChannel and Thomson Reuters were today's noteworthy initiations:

• B. Riley believes SonicWALL's (NASDAQ: SNWL) long-term outlook should benefit as the company specifically targets the SMB IT security market and is increasing its focus on the Asian and Latin American markets. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $14 target.
  
• Merriman started DG FastChannel (NASDAQ: DGIT) with a Buy rating and believes the recent closing of the Vyvx acquisition and anticipated closing of the Enliven acquisition could create positive catalysts for the stock.
  
• Citigroup assumed Thomson Reuters (NASDAQ: TRIN) with a Hold rating. The firm finds the valuation full at current levels and prefers to wait for a better entry point.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Ameristar Casinos (NASDAQ: ASCA) was initiated with an Overweight rating and $26 target at Thomas Weisel.
  
• William Blair assumed Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) with an Outperform rating.
  
• Longtop Financial (NYSE: LFT) was started at Oppenheimer with an Outperform rating and $25 target.

The NEXT and last company in my on-going series of the top 25 stocks for the NEXT 25 years is DG Fast Channel (NASDAQ: DGIT). DGIT is headquartered in Irving, Texas and has a current market capitalization of $350 million. DGIT is emerging as one of the go-to companies in the internet advertising world.

DG Fast Channel is a leading provider of digitally distributed marketing services to advertising agencies, broadcasters and general advertisers including printed media. The company employs a web based user interface for more than 5,000 advertisers and ad agencies to up-load digitally, either via satellite or cable Internet- radio, television and Internet commercials. The company services over 4,000 television and cable destinations and also over 10,000 radio outlets.