Analyst upgrades:

• Credit Suisse upgraded Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $55 from $44 based on earnings momentum and a bottom in the Imaging and Printing segment. Note that Dell was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform.
• Jefferies upgraded Covance (NYSE: CVD) to Buy from Hold as it believes investor expectations are more reasonable following the company's conference presentation and that its Late Stage segment should continue to post strong results. The firm raised its target on shares to $65 from $5.
• Stephens upgraded Home Bancshares (NASDAQ: HOMB) to Overweight from Equal Weight to reflect improved capital levels and a better-than-expected near-term outlook. The firm raised its target on shares to $27 from $24.
• Citigroup upgraded Macy's (NYSE: M) to Buy from Hold after meeting with management as it believes the My Macy's localization is gaining traction. The firm raised its target on shares to $30 from $15.
• Gymboree (NASDAQ: GYMB) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at FBR Capital.
• DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
• Baytex Energy (NYSE: BTE) was upgraded to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer at CIBC.

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded Talbots (NYSE: TLB) to Outperform from Market Perform as it believes the company's inventory and SG&A control should help earnings and the stock's risk/reward is compelling at current levels. The firm raised its target on shares to $7 from $5.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Human Genome (NASDAQ: HGSI) to Buy from Accumulate to reflect higher assumptions for the company's Lupus treatment Benlysta. The firm raised its target on shares to $26 from $18.
• KeyBanc upgraded Parkway Properties (NYSE: PKY) to Buy from Hold based on valuation, improving fundamentals, and stable capital position. The firm has a $17 target on the stock.
• HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.
• BioScrip (NASDAQ: BIOS) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO) closed at $6.98. The Federal district court for Eastern Texas upheld TIVO patents and said Echostar (NYSE: DISH) is infringing on them. TIVO June option implied volatility is at 87; July is at 81; verses its 26-week average of 88, according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional near term price movement.

Moody's (NYSE: MCO) closed at $28.64. MCO is hosting an investor meeting on June 4. MCO June option implied volatility is at 57, July is at 55; below its 26-week average of 71, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

As earnings season begins to wind down, some apparel retailers are scheduled to report quarterly results this week. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters anticipate that Walmart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), the 800-pound gorilla in the space, will report that it earned $0.77 per share in the first quarter, about the same as in the first quarter of last year. But JCPenney Co. (NYSE: JCP), Kohl's Corp. (NYSE: KSS), Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN), and Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) are expected to report lower profits for the first quarter as consumers continued to hold off on spending. Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) are expected to have swung to a loss year over year.

Whole Foods Market Inc. (NASDAQ: WFMI) and Winn Dixie Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: WINN) are likewise expected to report declining earnings, while the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (NYSE: GAP), parent of the A&P supermarket chain, is expected to have narrowed its net loss 68.9% to $0.28 per share.

While the release of economic data doesn't stop next week (see economic schedule highlights below), the earnings season does wind down dramatically. Most of the S&P 500 companies already have reported on the past quarter, which means dismal earnings news is largely behind us, at least for a while. About the only companies of note expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters to report falling earnings this week are Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST), Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc. (NYSE: WEN), Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL), Bank of Montreal (NYSE: BMO), and Steinway Musical Instruments Inc. (NYSE: LVB).

While PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) and Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) quarterly profits are expected to be about the same as a year ago, Liz Claiborne Inc. (NYSE: LIZ), Kenneth Cole Productions Inc. (NYSE: KCP), Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN), and Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) are expected to have swung to losses in the most recent quarter.

Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA), a cable/broadband entity that competes with Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH), reported earnings for the fourth quarter on Wednesday. Adjusted revenues increased 7%, and earnings per share jumped 35% to $0.27. Not a bad performance, and in fact, earnings beat estimates by four pennies according to this source.

Perhaps the biggest piece of news in the release is the increase in free cash flow for the full fiscal year. That jumped 56% to $3.7 billion, driven in part by a decrease in capital spending. I liked reading that management intends on focusing on free cash flow. It better, because it's going to be a challenging environment for the cable business, and the company committed itself to raising its dividend by 8%. On the flip side, though, as has been noted in a couple news reports, Comcast stated in the release that it doesn't feel like buying back stock at the moment. That won't be comforting to shareholders who have seen their shares hovering closer to a 52-week low than a 52-week high.

Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) has been fighting off an attempt by EchoStar (NASDAQ: DISH) to take over the troubled satellite radio firm. Now Sirius has turned to another company in the hopes of avoiding a hostile buy-out. According to The Wall Street Journal, Liberty Media may be the savior. "The talks set the stage for a battle between the leading U.S. satellite-television providers -- Liberty-controlled DirectTV Group Inc. and Mr. Ergen's Dish Network Corp. -- for control of the country's sole satellite-radio operator."

Last night, several media sources said Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) was going to file for Chapter 11. True or false? The fact is, the media did not know, but the stock could sell off sharply this morning on the rumor.

According to The New York Times, "A bankruptcy would make Sirius XM one of the largest casualties of the credit squeeze." So, the paper has an entire article on the "possibility" that Sirius shareholders will be wiped out today or tomorrow.

Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) jumped up on news that EchoStar (NYSE: DISH) was buying its debt, probably to try to get control of the satellite radio company. When it did not look like a deal was imminent, the stock backed off.

Trading at 11 cents per share, SIRI will probably make another run. It may not last long, but on a percentage basis, it should be a good ride.

Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) was showing early versions of mobile video for cars five years ago at the Consumer Electronics show. With it heavy debt load and questions about how large the market might be, the satellite radio company never took the step of offering it as a product.

The promise of mobile video may be behind that willingness of EchoStar (NASDAQ:DISH) to buy tens of million if not hundreds of millions of dollars of Sirius debt. The move could get EchoStar control of the satellite radio company. According to Reuters, "EchoStar chief Charlie Ergen's surprising interest in Sirius XM Radio Inc belies his ambition to liberate his satellite television service from the living room into cars and mobile devices."

EchoStar is taking a very big risk. First, it is putting money into the debt of a company which has never had an operating profit and which is experiencing slowing growth. Satellite radio is being hurt by competition from other consumer electronic products like multimedia phones.New car sales, it primary source of new subscribers, are falling sharply.

The second risk is that pushing video over the Sirius infrastructure may not work. The bandwidth from the satellite to the cars is very limited, closer to dial-up speeds than broadband, Sirius may not be able to "compress" the video files enough to get them though its system. In other words, the technology may not exist to put video on a system which was designed for audio transmission.

Other than the fact that it may not work, EchoStar's potential plans are brilliant.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) closed at $22.98. DTV is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on February 10. February option implied volatility is at 64; March is at 59; above its 26-week average of 53, according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Echostar (NASDAQ: DISH) closed at $12.84. DISH is expected to report Q3 EPS in late February. March option implied volatility is at 83, June is at 74; above its 26-week average of 63, according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

With its stock trading under $1.5 on many days, Sirius (NASDAQ: SIRI) shareholders don't have much hope to make money. But, whatever hope is left may be about to go away.

EchoStar (NASDAQ: DISH) is buying up the maturing debt of Sirius, and probably getting a good deal on the distressed paper. According to The Wall Street Journal, "EchoStar, has recently acquired part of a $300 million tranche of Sirius debt that matures on Feb. 17."

This post is part of our feature on Money Losers of 2008. See all 20.

There's no doubt about it -- times are tough. People are struggling to find work and to pay the bills as the value of their homes and savings dwindle. The poor get poorer, and the rich get richer.

Or do they? It's all relative, of course, but world's billionaires have been taking some big hits too. We take a look at Sheldon Adelson, Kirk Kerkorian, and Lakshmi Mittal in their own separate posts, but here are some other billionaires who have lost billions this year (courtesy of Forbes and Business Sheet).

• Brothers Anil and Mukesh Ambani of India's private conglomerate Reliance lost $32.5 billion and $28.2 billion, respectively.
• Warren Buffett, the Sage of Omaha, lost $16.5 billion. Shares of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK.A) are down about 32% since the beginning of the year.
• Microsoft (NYSE: MSFT) founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen lost $12.3 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively, while CEO Steve Balmer lost $6.5 billion. Shares of Microsoft are down 46% since the beginning of the year.
• Larry Page and Sergey Brin, cofounders of Google Inc. (NYSE: GOOG), lost $11.9 billion and $11.7 billion, respectively, and CEO Eric Schmidt lost $3.8 billion. The share price of Google has fallen 55% since the beginning of the year.
• Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL), lost $8.2 billion. Shares of Oracle are down 21% since the beginning of the year.
• Media maven Sumner Redstone lost $7.2 billion. Shares of his private investment firm National Amusements fell 70% this year.

• Baird upgraded Optimer Pharm (NASDAQ: OPTR) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $13 from $8 citing the decidedly positive data from the OPT-80 trial.
  
• Banc of America upgraded Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and believes management has set expectations well.
  
• Credit Suisse views Jacobs Engineering (NYSE: JEC) as a high quality name given the quality of management, execution track record, and relationship business model. Shares were upgraded to Outperform from Neutral.
• Horizon Lines (NYSE: HRZ) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.
  
• Bancolombia SA (NYSE: CIB) was raised to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Great Lakes Dredge (NASDAQ: GLDD) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Morgan Joseph.