Domino's Pizza (DPZ) introduced a rather interesting advertising campaign recently -- advertising the negative statements some of its customers have made. The most notable comments were made about the taste of the pizza and the quality of the ingredients.

Following the campaign, the company has introduced the first new specialty pizza under its new recipe, the Wisconsin 6 Cheese Pizza. The new pie will feature six different cheeses (obviously) on the company's new crust and with its new sauce. But the new pizza isn't the only news coming from Domino's. Next week, the pizzeria will report third-quarter earnings.

Analyst Upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS) to buy from hold based on valuation. The firm keeps a $39 target on the stock.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Kenexa (KNXA) to overweight from neutral, citing a strengthening of trends for the company. The firm has a $29 price target on the stock.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Gaylord Entertainment (GET) to buy from neutral on expectations the company will benefit from strong trends in 2011. The firm raised its target for shares to $35 from $32.50.
• MeadWestvaco (MWV) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
• EADS (EADSY) was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.

In the battle for pizza-chain dominance, it was Papa John's International (PZZA) that took the cake (or rather the crust). The Consumerist reports that the latest results from the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index -- tracking points on customer expectations, perceived quality and value, customer complaints, and customer loyalty -- show Papa John's topped its peers in both the pizza business and the fast-food sector overall.

The chain improved its score by 6.7% from last year, hitting 80/100.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) Q1 profit fell despite strong sales of Plavix and Abilify.
• Check Point Software Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: CHKP) was downgraded based on its guidance.
• Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) strong Q1 results were boosted by early debt retirement.
• DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. (NYSE: DWA) strong Q1 results were driven by Madagascar 2.
• Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ENDP) Q1 results led to an analyst's downgrade.
• E*Trade Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFC) widened its Q1 loss, sending shares sharply lower.

Domino's (NYSE: DPZ) first quarter earnings report showed that the company is weathering the recession to date better than analysts had expected. Net income was up 245% over fourth quarter 2008, and 168% over same quarter a year ago.

However, this and the earnings per share of 41 cents were inflated by $21.2 million realized from early debt retirement. Without this, EPS would have come in at 20 cents, still above analysts' expectations of 17 cents but down by a penny from the first quarter of 2008.

The company jumped at the chance to retire $43 million of 5.261% fixed-rate notes for $22.3 million of cash on-hand and very cheap money draw from its revolving bank account. Continuing on that course, Domino's has already retired an additional $25 million that will show as $12.9 million to the good in the next quarter's earnings.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

How to compare the two dominant pizza brands, Yum! Brands Inc.'s (NYSE: YUM) Pizza Hut vs. Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ)?

Most annoying ads? The wing man series by Pizza Hut is a recent annoyance, but Domino's still, in my mind, has not lived down the ignominy of its Noid commercials in the 1980s.

Most obscene side-dishes? What in the hell are dipping strips? Like we don't realize they're just pizza dough with goo indistinguishable from the plaque clogging our arteries. Bad Pizza Hut! Bad!

Size? Pizza Hut -- 12,800 outlets in 90 countries. Domino's -- 8,624 outlets in 55 countries.