"Happy New Year. No, I'm not seven weeks late. 1.3 billion Chinese are celebrating the biggest holiday of the year -- Chinese New Year," notes Tony Sagami.

The contributing editor to UnCommon Wisdom explains, "The Lunar New Year is considered to be a combination of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's all rolled into an elaborate celebration of reflection, gratitude, renewal and hope. It is the single most celebrated holiday in China.

Analyst Upgrades

• Wells Fargo upgraded MasterCard (MA) to outperform from market perform on valuation as it views the sell-off in shares following the company's Q4 results as unwarranted.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Best Buy (BBY) to buy from neutral on valuation as it believes sentiment has gotten overly negative on the stock. The firm raised its target on shares to $44 from $42.
• Citigroup upgraded Gap (GPS) to buy from hold on valuation following the recent pullback in shares and the company's sales results. The firm raised its price target for the stock to $24 from $23.
• Starwood Hotels (HOT) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at Baird.
• Murphy Oil (MUR) was upgraded to hold from sell at Collins Stewart.
• Motorola (MOT) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.

Analyst Upgrades

• Canaccord upgraded IBM (IBM) to buy from hold, citing the better-than-expected Q4 report, an ongoing economic recovery and higher IT budgets. The firm raised its target to $150 from $130.
• Citigroup upgraded Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) to buy from hold to reflect strength in the oilseed processing market and a positive inflection in ethanol profitability. The firm raised its target on shares to $37 from $33.
• FBR Capital upgraded Tesco (TESO) to outperform from market perform on expectations the company's top drive orders will accelerate in the coming quarters. The firm raised its target price on shares to $18.
• CBS (CBS) was upgraded to buy from hold at Jefferies.
• HSBC Holdings (HBC) was upgraded to buy from hold at RBS.
• Essex Property Trust (ESS) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.

According to a recent study from Credit Suisse (CS), it's common for people living in large cities in China to spend 30% to 35% of household income on their children's education. This helps to explain the boom in China's private education market.

This week, one of the largest operators in this market -- New Oriental Education (EDU) --- published its latest quarterly results. Revenues came to $61.2 million, up 23.8% over the year. The main growth drivers were higher enrollments in language training and test preparation.

What's more, New Oriental generated cash flow from operations of $9.6 million in the quarter. In all, there is $210 million in the bank.

"New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU), which offers English language instruction to Chinese students, recently fell sharply after disappointing the Wall Street crowd," says Tony Sagami.

In his The Asia Stock Alert. the China stock specialist suggests, "This pullback is creating a buying opportunity. Indeed, this is your big chance to buy it on sale.

"Digging deeper, EDU's numbers contain both bad and good news. Among the good news, EDU earned $1.57 per share of profits last quarter, which is exactly what the consensus forecast was and 27% more than the same period last year.

"The Chinese Dragon strikes again," says small cap expert Jim Oberweis, Jr., adding, "So far in 2009, the MSCI China Index is up 30% and our Oberweis China Opportunities Fund (OBCHX) has gained 62%."

In his The Oberweis Report, he says, "China will be a great place to invest over the medium-to-long term, even if unpredictable in the short term."

Here, the advisor and money manager reveals four stocks that he considers "some of the most interesting Chinese ADRs to buy now: E-House (NYSE: EJ), Asia Info Holdings (NASDAQ: ASIA), New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU), and Longtop Financial (NYSE: LFT).

This post is part of a special annual report -- Top Stock Picks '09 -- in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked 75 leading newsletter advisors to select their favorite investment for the new year.

"New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU), the largest English instruction and college prep course school in China, is my top pick for 2009 says China stock expert Tony Sagami.

In his specialized newsletter, the Asia Stock Alert, he explains, "Every time I travel to Asia, I'm on the lookout for new ideas; on my latest trip I found that one of the oldest stocks in our portfolio -- New Oriental -- is still one of the very best.

"I've previously attended New Oriental classes in Shanghai and Shenzhen before, and during the Olympics, I visited their home office in Beijing. The registration desk had a steady stream of students signing up for new classes throughout the day.

"Its bookstore was just as busy as the registration desk. The most popular books were Chinese versions of SAT, GRE, GMAT, and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) preparation guides, as well as college-specific books.

"China places high value on education, making New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU) somewhat defensive in a growth-stunted economy," says Chris Rowe. (Incidentally, we reviewed two U.S. education stocks in a post yesterday.)

Meanwhile, in The Tycoon Report, Rowe explains, "We believe a slowing global economy will have minimal impact on the education sector in China." Here's his review of this firm, which operates English language schools.

"New Oriental Education is a rapidly growing company that provides private educational services to over 1.3 million students via 207 school centers, primarily in the People's Republic of China. They help privately prepare Chinese for admission tests to foreign universities emphasizing English.

"It offers its program, service, and products in six areas: language training; test preparation; primary and secondary school; educational content, software, and other technology development and distribution; online education; and other services and products.

"I consider the stock to be somewhat defensive in a growth-stunted economy. And while you may be able to make large short-term profits on this stocks, the goal in this recommendation is to be very long-term holders.

Analyst upgrades:

• Cowen upgraded Aaron Rents (NYSE: RNT) to Outperform from Neutral and believes the company's business model is gaining momentum despite the difficult environment. The firm views valuation as attractive.
  
• Citigroup upgraded shares of MedCath (NASDAQ: MDTH) to Hold from Sell on valuation following the recent sell-off. The company's target was lowered to $9 from $19.
  
• Stanford upgraded AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV) to Buy from Hold based on valuation and because they believe its visibility over the next year has improved.
• Chiquita Brands (NYSE: CQB) was lifted to Buy from Hold at BB&T.
  
• Chico's FAS (NYSE: CHS) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
  
• FCStone (NASDAQ: FCSX) was raised to Strong Buy from Outperform at Raymond James.

Analyst downgrades:

• RBC Capital downgraded Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR) to Sector Perform from Outperform based on reduced valuation parameters and lack of catalysts. The company's target was lowered to $9 from $15.
• Kellogg (NYSE: K) and Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) were cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS.
  
• Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ: ESLR) was downgraded at JP Morgan to Underweight from Neutral.
• Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman and to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.

In a special report on investing in China, global expert John Christy looks at New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU). Here's the latest from The Forbes International Investment Report.

"No discussion of 'traditional Chinese values' can be complete without mentioning the importance of education. The Chinese education ethic intersects with the country's recent embrace of capitalism in New Oriental Education, China's leading private education company.

"Founded in 1993, New Oriental is one of China's great entrepreneurial success stories, making its founder and chief executive Michael Yu a billionaire. The company operates a network of nearly 250 schools and learning centers in 38 cities across China.

"These schools teach English, foreign languages, test preparation and more. Think of it as a cross between Berlitz and Kaplan, but with a much bigger target audience.

"New Oriental sells for 43 times analyst forecasts for fiscal 2009 earnings. While that's not cheap, New Oriental has a dominant position in its market and a history of delivering growth. Earnings are expected to grow 50% next year.

"And thanks to the high priority that many Chinese place on education, New Oriental's services aren't as much of a 'discretionary' purchase as they might seem. Demand for most of New Oriental's courses should hold up well even if China's economy cools."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Spurred by a near epidemic occurrence of brain-degenerating conditions as we age, people of all ages and backgrounds are stepping up their personal efforts to improve and maintain their brain health. According to a story in USA Today, sales of brain fitness software reached nearly $230 million in 2007. USA Today stated, "SharpBrains, (a market research firm) estimates the brain fitness software market will reach $2 billion in 2015 in the United States."

Prudent investment strategy might include a speculative foray into this popular and growing field. In light of this, you may wish to pay heed to blogger Steven Mallas, and read his take on Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI).

First on the list for brain maintenance is physical activity, which probably accounts for the outstanding sales of Nintendo's Wii Fit. from Nintendo Ltd. (OTC: NTDOY). Active lives promote healthy blood circulation, which helps to feed steady amounts of oxygen to the hungry brain. Good hard work, cardiovascular exercise and even regular sexual activity can all help to keep your heart pumping adequate levels of oxygen into your brain.

"The Olympics have long been a boon to stock markets of host countries," notes Tony Sagami, a leading global stock advisor with a noted specialty in Asian markets.

In his Asia Stock Alert newsletter, he notes, "I believe the chief beneficiaries of the Olympic Games will be consumer and travel-related stocks. And within these sectors, I've chosen six stocks poised to bring home Olympic gold from Beijing."

"We saw a 19% gain in the Spanish stock market in the 12 months before the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and the 27% gain in the Greek stock market in the year before the 2004 Athens Olympics. And those countries were not growing at a fraction of the breakneck pace that China is. So it wouldn't surprise me to see the Chinese stock market do even better.

Olympic Gold Winner #1: China Mobile (NYSE: CHL):

"It seems like every person I see in China has a cell phone glued to their ear. And the cell phone is not just the primary voice communication medium in China; it is also the common way most Chinese access the Internet and email. In China, the cell phone 'is' the personal computer.

"Heck, most new high-rise condominium and apartment complexes being built in China aren't even wired for land lines. Once you understand the device's role, you'll see why China Mobile has more cell phone users (360 million) than the U.S. has people. I expect a lot of cell phone calls and text messages during the Beijing Olympics!

Here are a few highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) had a lackluster quarter due in part to the acquistion of ATI.
• AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) posted a larger than expected loss due to rising fuel costs.
• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares are hunkered down post-MacWorld but ahead of the Q1 report.
• Genentech Inc. (NYSE: DNA) beat earnings estimates, though its growth is slowing.
• General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) forecasts earnings growth on cost-cutting and overseas sales.
• IBM (NYSE: IBM) had an impressive fourth quarter and expects a good 2008 (see transcript).
• Intel Corp.'s (NASDAQ: INTC) solid results failed to impress investors (see transcript).
• Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) posted a solid first quarter, with growth in all divisions.
• New Oriental Educational & Technology Group Inc. (NYSE: EDU) posted disappointing results.
• Novartis AG (NYSE: NVS) profits fell on restructuring costs and increased competition for generics.
• Sony Ericsson beat estimates and is gaining market share in the global cell phone market.
• TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) revised its fourth quarter outlook after strong December sales.
• Vignette Corp. (NASDAQ: VIGN) raised its fourth quarter revenue guidance, which buoyed shares.
• Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM) lowered its guidance on weak holiday sales.

See additional earnings highlights. Also, Jim Cramer ponders the ennui of the new earnings season. Georges Yared is bullish on tech stocks, and big tech executives are bullish as well. Jonathan Berr looks ahead to upcoming big tech reports.

Other upcoming results to watch for include Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN), eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT), Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM), Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), E*Trade Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFN), and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

The plunge in US markets is spreading beyond our shores -- and has even hit the Chinese stocks.

And one of the notable decliners is New Oriental Educational & Technology Group, Inc. (NYSE: EDU), which reported a disappointing fiscal Q2. The company is a leading English language provider.

Revenues came to $32.6 million, up 42.4%. Net income was up 77% to $2 million.

Good, huh? Unfortunately, it looks like fiscal Q3 may be tough. New Oriental sees revenue growth of 22% to 28%.

What are the issues? Well, there are likely to be disruptions from the upcoming Olympics (who wants to study then?)

One of the most intriguing aspects of the private education market in China is its potential. Over the past twelve month, the country's leading provider of such services expanded the number of its schools by thirty percent.

New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU) is the largest provider of private educational services in China. The firm offers foreign language training, test preparation courses, primary and secondary school education, development and distribution of educational content, and online education. It operates from 149 schools, mostly in eastern China. That's up from 115 schools a year ago.

Investors were pleased earlier in the week, when the firm reported fiscal Q1 EPS of 91 cents and revenues of $81.1 million. The Street had been looking for 79 cents and $72.8 million. Management also guided Q2 revenues to $28.0-$29.8 million, versus Street consensus of $28.63 million. Brean Murray and CIBC World Markets subsequently reiterated "buy" ratings on the issue. The stock popped on the news and then passed into a bullish "flag" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling when they entered them. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Altogether, brokers recommend the shares with three "buys" and two "holds". Analysts expect a forty percent growth rate, through the next year. The EDU Sales Growth rate (42.53%), EPS Growth rate (24.66%), Operating Margin (24.15%), Net Profit Margin (24.79%) and Return on Assets (16.82%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions own about 44 percent of the outstanding shares. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between $23.10 and $77.00. A stop-loss of $65.25 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.