Analyst Upgrades

• JPMorgan upgraded T. Rowe Price (TROW) to overweight from neutral while downgrading Janus Capital (JNS) to underweight from neutral to reflect valuations and fundamentals. The firm has a $67 price target for T. Rowe Price shares.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Lincoln Electric (LECO) to overweight from neutral as it believes the rebound in global manufacturing is accelerating. The firm has a $70 price target on the stock.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Highwoods Properties (HIW) to market perform from underperform, citing valuation and a strong balance sheet.
• Corning (GLW) was upgraded to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Allergan (AGN) was upgraded to conviction buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Mohawk (MHK) was upgraded to buy from neutral at SunTrust.

Analyst Upgrades

• BMO Capital upgraded EOG Resources (EOG) to market perform from underperform. The firm has a $100 target on the stock.
• Morgan Joseph upgraded Glimcher Realty (GRT) to buy from neutral with a $6.50 target. The firm believes the company has solved most of its liquidity problems while its dividend yield is very attractive.
• Citigroup upgraded AmerisourceBergen (ABC) to buy from hold.
• Lincoln Electric (LECO) was upgraded to gradually accumulate from hold at Soleil.
• BMC Software (BMC) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
• Mercer (MERC) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Raymond James.

Analyst Upgrades

• Barrington upgraded Lincoln Electric (LECO) to outperform from market perform to reflect its positive 2010-2012 outlook for the global welding sector. The firm has a $60 price target on shares.
• Merriman upgraded Akamai (AKAM) to buy from neutral as it believes the company's market share losses have stemmed and traffic volume growth should outpace pricing declines.
• Oppenheimer upgraded Blackstone Group (BX) to outperform from perform, citing improving fundamentals and disclosure. The firm set a $20.50 price target on the stock.
  
• Freeport McMoRan (FCX) was upgraded to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Charles River Labs (CRL) was upgraded to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
  

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.

Analyst downgrades:

• 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.

Analyst initiations:

• 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: Lincoln Electric, Prospect Capital and GMX Resources were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Piper believes Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ: LECO) is positioned to capitalize on global infrastructure spending as a leading manufacturer of welding/metal fabrication equipment and materials. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $100 target.
  
• Wachovia said Prospect Capital (NASDAQ: PSEC) has good visibility on portfolio growth and sees significant value in the potential sale of the company Gas Solutions business. The firm assumed shares with an Outperform rating.
  
• Collins Stewart initiated GMX Resources (NASDAQ: GMXR) with a Buy rating and $67 target. The firm believes the company's drilling program will continue to drive both strong production and proved reserves growth.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Louisiana Pacific (NYSE: LPX) was initiated at RBC Capital with an Underperform rating and $10 target.
  
• The firm also started Mercer International (NASDAQ: MERC) with an Outperform rating and $11 target.
  
• Keefe Bruyette initiated SWS Group (NYSE: SWS) with a Market Perform rating.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: The technology and services sector, Cognizant, Infosys Technologies and Silicom Ltd were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Wachovia initiated shares of Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), Micron (NYSE: MU) and Nokia (NYSE: NOK) with Outperform ratings and IBM (NYSE: IBM), AMD (NYSE: AMD) and Motorola (NYSE: MOT) with Market Perform ratings.
  
• CIBC started shares of Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) and Infosys (NASDAQ: INFY) with Sector Outperformer ratings and a $100 target and $60 target, respectively. The firm views risk/reward as favorable.
  
• Merriman initiated Silicom Ltd (NASDAQ: SILC) with a Neutral rating, citing valuation and low visibility into the quarter.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• BMO Capital started shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) with an Outperform rating.
  
• Solei initiated Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ: LECO) with a Buy rating and $114 target.
  
• Merrill initiated Northwest Airlines (NYSE: NWA) with a Buy rating and $23 target.