The future investment stars are already with us. The NYSE Financial Future Challenge, operated by the NYSE Foundation, By Kids for Kids, K12 Inc. and the United Investors Association, is in full swing, with five finalists just identified. To reach this level, the participants had to develop a new product, idea or process that would "excite, educate and motivate their peers" to become interested in the financial marketplace. The eventual winner lurks within this subset and will receive a $2,500 prize -- a great way to get that portfolio started. And, he or she will be feted at a closing bell ceremony at the NYSE (NYX) on January 11, 2010.

The finalists presented a variety of ideas which are sure to generate some buzz. Kelsey Foss, a 12-year-old from Mountainville, NY, proposed a new television show, "Stock Market Tycoon Idol," which would harness the popularity of reality TV while amping up the content. The program would involve the journeys of 10 kids as they seek to make money or lose it, with the possibility of becoming virtual millionaires along the way. The show would be set at a mock NYSE studio on Wall Street, and exports would be brought out to mentor the contestants. The reality TV reach would help engage a younger audience.

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

• Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) beat earnings expectations for Q3, lifting shares.
• AeroVironment Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV) topped Q1 estimates and maintained its full-year guidance.
• Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) reported solid Q3 results that topped analysts' expectations.
• FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) Q1 profits slumped on fuel costs and the economy, but revenues were higher.
• General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) posted solid Q1 results and lifted its full-year guidance.
• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) beat Q3 earnings expectations but revenue fell short of estimates.
• K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN) reported a loss for Q4 but still beat analysts' expectations.
• Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) reported strong Q3 results, including a rise in same-store sales.
• Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) posted better-than-expected Q3 results amidst chaos on Wall Street.
• Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) beat Q1 expectations and annouced record operating margin rise.
• Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) reported better-than-expected results even as its net loss widened.

Upcoming quarterly reports include AutoZone (NYSE: AZO), Lennar (NYSE: LEN), Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE), Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM), and KB Home (NYSE: KBH).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN) offers proprietary curriculum, software, and educational services for online delivery to students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Products include online public schools and individualized supplemental programs offered through traditional public schools. The firm also operates the K12 International Academy, a diploma-granting online private school. Courses cover core subjects, such as English, math, science, history and art. K12 serves more than 40,000 students.

The company pleased investors last week, when it reported a fiscal Q4 loss of a penny per share and revenues of $56.5 million. Analysts had been looking for a five cent per share deficit and sales of $47.8 million. Management also said it expected enrollment growth to drive FY09 revenues past $300 million ($283.12M consensus). Argus subsequently reiterated its "buy" rating on the shares and boosted its price target to $33.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: K-12 Inc., ChinaEdu and Cardtronics were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Baird is positive on K-12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN)'s leadership position and growing market opportunity for expansion. The firm started shares with an Outperform rating and $26 target. Shares were also initiated at Morgan Stanley with an Equal Weight rating and at Credit Suisse with an Outperform rating.
• Bear initiated ChinaEdu (NASDAQ: CEDU) with an Outperform rating and $11.20 target and said demand for post-secondary education in is outstripping the capacity of land based universities and that CEDU will benefit from the governments strategy to raise education levels. Piper, which started shares with a Buy rating and $10 target, believes the online higher education market is still in the relatively early stages as online student enrollments represent less than one-fourth of total university enrollments.
• William Blair believes Cardtronics (NASDAQ: CATM) has a highly attractive opportunity to increase the number of ATM sites it operates. The firm assumed coverage with an Outperform rating.

Other initiataions:

• MedAssets (NASDAQ: MDAS) was initiated with an Overweight rating and $24 target at Lehman, at Deutsche Bank with a Buy rating and $25 target and at Wachovia with a Market Perform rating.
• Jefferies initiated VanceInfo (NYSE: VIT) with a Buy rating and $11 target.
• Susquehanna initiated Under Armour (NYSE: UA) with a Neutral rating.

Not that long ago, people thought going to an online school was second-rate. But it's now becoming common – and widely accepted.

For the most part, online education has been mostly for adults (especially those who already have busy careers). But things are changing; take a look at K12 (NYSE: LRN). This online school caters to students from kindergarten through 12th grade.

K12 went public this week, spiking 36% to $25.55 in its shares' first day of trading.

The company's platform is quite sophisticated, which is the result of more than $100 million in curriculum and technology investments. There are more than 11,000 lessons, which employ things like Flash animations, real-time feedback and so on.

From 2004 to 2007, enrollments went from 11,000 to 27,000 and revenues increased from $71.4 million to $140.6 million (which is a compound annual growth rate of about 25%). K12 makes money primarily from contracts with public schools.

One of K12's major shareholders is Mike Milken, who was the "junk bond" king of the 1980s.

The lead underwriters on the IPO included Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS).

You can find the prospectus at the SEC website. Also, if you want to find other recent IPO information, visit DealProfiles.com.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

A virtual public school? That's what K12 does. Over the years, the company has invested roughly $95 million to create an e-learning environment where grade school students get instruction from certified teachers. Now, the company has filed to go public.

K12 has arrangements with public school systems in 16 states. From 2004 to 2007, enrollments increased from 11,000 to 27,000 students. And during this time, revenues went from $71.4 million to $116.9 million.

Parents choose K12 for a variety of reasons, such as geographic constraints, disabilities, the need for faster or slower learning, and even safety concerns of local schools.

So far, the results have been fairly strong. The students test near or above state averages on standardized tests. What's more, based on an internal study of K12 parents, about 97% were "satisfied or very satisfied" and 95% said they would recommend the company to other families.

The lead underwriters on the IPO include Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS). The proposed ticker is LRN.

The IPO prospectus is at the SEC website. Also, check out more recent filings.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.