Analyst Upgrades

• Citigroup (C) to outperform from market perform at Bernstein.
• Cubist Pharma (CBST) to outperform from neutral at RW Baird.
• Pentair (PNR) to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• Heritage Financial (HFWA) to outperform from market perform at Keefe Bruyette.
• SL Green Realty (SLG) and Digital Realty (DLR) to market perform from underperform at FBR Capital.
• MGM Resorts (MGM) to neutral from Sell at Janney Capital.
• Ciena (CIEN) to buy from neutral and Olin (OLN) to buy from underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• Mellanox (MLNX) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• ConocoPhillips (COP) and Canadian Natural (CNQ) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• IDEX (IEX) to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
• Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• Ctrip.com (CTRP) to positive from neutral at Susquehanna.
• Linear Technology (LLTC) and Analog Devices (ADI) to hold from sell at Auriga.
• Quicksilver (KWK) to outperform from market perform at BMO Capital.

Analyst Upgrades

• U.S. Steel (X) to buy from neutral and Barnes & Noble (BKS) to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• Salesforce.com (CRM) to buy from hold at Jefferies.
• Dollar Tree (DLTR) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• Edison International (EIX) to hold from sell at Citigroup.
• Analog Devices (ADI) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.

Analyst Upgrades

• Micron (MU) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Baker Hughes (BHI) to outperform from market perform at BMO Capital.
• PDL BioPharma (PDLI) to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Fluor (FLR) and Rush Enterprises (RUSHA) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Camden Property (CPT) to outperform from neutral at Macquarie.
• Pinnacle Financial (PNFP) to buy from hold at Wunderlich.
• Linear Technology (LLTC) to neutral from reduce at Nomura.
• Hologic (HOLX) and Illumina (ILMN) to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• F5 Networks (FFIV) to buy from neutral at Gleacher.

The earnings season ramps up this week. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters foresee strong reports from such big names as Apple (AAPL), eBay (EBAY), IBM (IBM), General Electric (GE), Google (GOOG), Schlumberger (SLB) and Southwest Airlines (LUV). And fast on the heels of last week's big earnings beat from JPMorgan Chase (JPM), there will be plenty more results from the financial sector to peruse this week.

Among the financials expected to post double-digit earnings growth this week are Capital One Financial (COF), Morgan Stanley (MS), SLM Corp. (SLM) and U.S. Bancorp (USB), but the week's biggest earnings winner may be Wells Fargo (WFC).

Upbeat economic data from China, slightly better than expected earnings, a clearer holiday retail season, a higher estimate on oil demand, and a better all around mood toward the economy. That is what led stocks higher today. The DJIA now has eclipsed 11,100 on top of just being above 11,000 this year. We also had record highs again in gold.

Here were today's closing bell levels:

Dow Jones 11,096.08 +75.68 (0.69%)
S&P 500 1,178.10 +8.33 (0.71%)
Nasdaq 2,441.23 +23.31 (0.96%)

Analyst Upgrades

• Janney Montgomery upgraded MasterCard (MA) to buy from neutral. The firm has a $250 price target on the stock.
• Lazard upgraded Frontline (FRO) to hold from sell following the better than expected Q1 report.
• Knight Capital (NITE) was upgraded at BMO Capital to outperform from market perform. The firm cites valuation and improved fundamentals for the downgrade. The firm has an $18 price target on the stock.
• Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• Carnival (CCL) was upgraded to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• Computer Sciences (CSC) was upgraded to buy from hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

"It was interesting to watch the pundits react to the iPad recently; even though none of them had used or even really understood the product, it seemed as though no one liked it following its first introduction," notes tech expert Paul McWilliams in his just-released review of the new tech device from Apple (AAPL).

In his Next Inning newsletter, he explains, "Of course, this was similar to how the pundits first reacted to the iPod when it was released. As the pundits trashed the iPad following its release, I reminded readers about the iPod story and predicted we would see the pundits about face and the stock price run up ahead of the product release."

Analyst Upgrades

• Auriga upgraded Intel (INTC) to buy from hold to reflect the stock's relative valuation after channel checks indicated PC shipment plans continue to be solid. The firm raised its target price on shares to $24 from $20.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded RenaissanceRE (RNR) to buy from hold on valuation and believes stock buybacks and reserve releases will drive the company's growth. The firm raised its target price on shares to $65 from $59.
• UBS upgraded Philip Morris (PM) to buy from neutral based on increased confidence in its earnings outlook and relative valuation. The firm raised its target to $54 from $49.
• Chevron (CVX) was raised to outperform from market perform at Bernstein.
• Barnes & Noble (BKS) was upgraded to sell from conviction sell at Goldman Sachs.
• Deutsche Bank (DB) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.

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

• Aetna Inc. (AET) shares declined after the insurer issued a surprise earnings warning for 2010.
• Alcoa Inc. (AA) swung to a smaller-than-expected Q4 profit even as revenue declined, sending shares lower.
• Carter's Inc. (CRI) posted strong Q3 earnings that topped estimates and same-store sales growth.
• Chevron Corp. (CVX) shares declined slightly after the company issued a surprise earnings warning.
• Con-Way Inc. (CNW) was downgraded due in part to concerns about near-term earnings.

The Street.com's Jim Cramer says that it's too soon to think about selling the semis, the PCs, the components, the DRAMs.

When do we sell the semis? The DRAMS? The flash? When do we get out of the hard drives?

These are legit questions, but the people who are asking, "When do we sell Micron (NYSE: MU) (Cramer's Take), Western Digital (NYSE: WDC) (Cramer's Take) and SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) (Cramer's Take)?" are the very people who told you never to own them.

That's the conundrum of this semi cycle and PC cycle. Just as we are finally hitting our stride and we realize that the semi cycle is alive and well again, AND NOT JUST RE-STOCKING, all over the papers, including the Wall Street Journal, we see reports crying, "When do we sell?"

In addition to Intel Corp.'s (NASDAQ: INTC) third quarter earnings release, chip makers Altera Corp. (NASDAQ: ALTR) and Linear Technology Corp. (NASDAQ: LLTC) are expected to post results Tuesday after the market closes as well. (Also see our Intel earnings preview.)

For the three months that ended in September, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect Altera to report that its net income fell 38.7% from a year ago to $0.19 per share. Revenue for the period is expected to be 20.6% lower to $283.3 million, which is in line with recently raised guidance. Altera has met or topped earnings estimates in the past five quarters, beating by as much as a nickel per share. The long-term EPS growth forecast is 14.4%, which is better than that of competitors Intel and Texas Instruments Corp. (NYSE: TXN).

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded SAP (NYSE: SAP) to Buy from Hold on expectations license declines will trough in Q2 and margins will expand going forward due to cost control and price increases. The firm has a $46 price target on shares.
• BofA/Merrill upgraded STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) to Buy from Underperform on expectations the company will benefit from improving industry fundamentals in 2010.
• Citigroup upgraded Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) to Buy from Hold to reflect the firm's positive copper outlook, as well as valuation following the recent pullback in shares. The firm has a $58 price target on the stock.
• Phototronics (NASDAQ: PLAB) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• Anglo American (NASDAQ: AAUK) was raised to Hold from Sell at RBS.
• Peabody Energy (NASDAQ: BTU) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.

Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) started off the new earnings season with disappointing results that helped to stifle the recent rally. Was that enough of a sign of what's to come? No, probably not. But the earnings reports start to fly in earnest this week, which should provide a more detailed picture of the state of things.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters anticipate that some of the biggest names will prove to be holding their own. Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) is expected to post a profit of $4.91 per share, marginally higher than a year ago, and Johnson & Johnson's (NYSE: JNJ) expected $1.22 per share profit is slightly lower year over year. Even Mattel Inc.'s (NYSE: MAT) estimated loss of $0.13 per share is the same as in the year-ago period.

Analyst upgrades:

• JMP Securities upgraded CB Richard Ellis (NYSE: CBG) to Outperform from Market Perform. The analyst believes the new Public-Private Investment Program will create liquidity, which will result in some degree of activity. Shares were also upgraded at JP Morgan to Overweight from Neutral.
  
• Thomas Weisel upgraded Linear Tech (NASDAQ: LLTC) to Overweight from Market Weight due to stabilizing business and favorable end market exposure.
  
• UBS upgraded PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $60 from $57 due to moderating input costs, earnings and investment flexibility, improving U.S. beverage business, and leverage from its market share in food.
• Tibco (NASDAQ: TIBX) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
  
• Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG) was upgraded at ING Group to Buy from Hold.
  
• Hospira (NYSE: HSP) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Leerink.

The new earnings season ramps up this week as Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) reports fourth-quarter results. Last week, the Pittsburgh-based producer of aluminum and alumina announced layoffs and production cuts as a reaction to the economic downturn. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect that Alcoa will have swung to its first quarterly loss in years: $0.10 per share. That compares to a profit of $0.36 per share in the same period of the previous year. Revenues for the quarter are expected to have fallen 28.8% from a year ago to $5.3 billion. For 2008, analysts are looking for earnings of $1.40 per share on revenue of $27.6 billion, down from $2.60 per share and $30.8 billion in the previous year. Alcoa missed earnings estimates in three of the past five quarters, by 25.4% in the third quarter. The consensus recommendation of analysts shifted from buy to hold AA during the past quarter. The share price has been climbing in recent weeks, but it is 65.6% lower than a year ago.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) is also scheduled to report fourth-quarter results this week, one of a handful of tech stocks to do so. The number one semiconductor maker is expected to post earnings down 86.8% to $0.05 per share, and sales of $8.2 billion, down 23.3% from a year ago. Last week, Intel forecast sales for the quarter of $8.2 billion. The full-year numbers are expected to be marginally lower than a year ago, or $0.94 per share on $37.7 billion. Intel only missed earnings estimates in one of the past five quarters. Shares are about $2.00 higher than the 52-week low, but 37.2% lower than a year ago.