Analyst upgrades:

• Piper Jaffray upgraded Viacom (NYSE:VIA) to Overweight from Neutral to reflect the improving ad market and better ratings at key cable networks. The firm raised its target on shares to $35 from $29.
  
• Baird upgraded Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) to Outperform from Neutral on valuation as it views the recent weakness as a buying opportunity. The firm keeps an $84 price target on shares.
  
• Jefferies upgraded Usana (NASDAQ:USNA) to Buy from Hold as it believes direct selling companies have been gaining momentum. The firm raised its target on shares to $44 from $37.
• AK Steel (NYSE:AKS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank.
  
• First Merit (NASDAQ:FMER) was upgraded to Perform from Underperform at Oppenheimer.
  
• Spectra Energy (NYSE:SE) was upgraded to Conviction Buy from Neutral at Goldman.

Analyst upgrades:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) to Buy from Hold on expectations that oil supply will begin to tighten and demand rise. The firm has a $55 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Pinnacle West (NYSE: PNW) to Buy from Hold and added the stock to its Top Picks Live list. The firm expects the company's settlement in Arizona to be approved and raised its target on shares to $35 from $32.
• RBC Capital upgraded NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) to Outperform from Sector Perform as it believes that the company is performing better than expected during its October quarter. The firm expects the company to continue to execute well during subsequent quarters and it raised its target to $33.
• Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• PetSmart (NASDAQ: PETM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.
• General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Analyst upgrades:

• Wells Fargo transferred coverage of Cooper Industries (NYSE: CBE) with an Outperform rating, upgraded from the previous analysts' Market Perform rating. The firm believes commercial construction will be of less of a headwind for the company than the Street thinks, and has a $38-$41 valuation range on the stock.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded SuccessFactors (NASDAQ: SFSF) to Buy from Hold after channel checks indicated demand trends picked up in July. The firm raised its target on shares to $15 from $12.
• UBS upgraded eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) to Buy from Neutral and believes Marketplace transaction growth is "turning the corner." Additionally, the firm believes the secondary market represents a long-term opportunity for the company. The firm raised its target to $28 from $24.
• Novartis (NYSE: NVS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies.
• Arcelor Mittal (NYSE: MT) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
• Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform AMC Monday at Bernstein.

Arcelor Mittal (NYSE: MT) closed at $29.87. MT is in advanced discussions with its principle bankers to improve its financial leverage covenant banking facility. MT is expected to report Q2 EPS on July 29. MT August and December option implied volatility of 69 is below its 26-week average of 77, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Regis Corp (NYSE: RGS) closed at $12.23. RGS announced on July 8 a convertible note offering and a common stock offering of 11.5M RGS shares priced at $12.37, with net proceeds of $281M. RGS July option implied volatility is at 62, August and December is at 65; verses its 26-week average of 66, according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Analyst upgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Affiliated Managers Group (NYSE: AMG) to Market Perform from Outperform to reflect the rebound in equity and fixed income markets as well as an attractive risk/reward profile. The firm raised its target on shares to $72 from $61.
• Jefferies upgraded AGCO Corp. (NYSE: AGCO) to Buy from Hold as it believes equipment sales in Brazil are holding up better than expected and farm stimulus should set a floor in sales. The firm raised its target on shares to $36 from $25.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) to Buy from Hold to reflect reduced balance sheet risk and a more positive view on the steel sector. The raised its target on shares to $42 from $23
• Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
• Synovus (NYSE: SNV) was raised to Buy from Neutral at SunTrust.
• First American (NYSE: FAF) was lifted to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.

"The steel stocks tend to go through boom and bust cycles depending on global economic activity; they have been pummeled over the last year, as the global economy slowed," notes turnaround expert George Putnam.

In his The Turnaround Letter, he explains, "But the news about steel is not all bad." Indeed, he believes some steel companies are poised for a turnaround. Here's his review of 6 leading steel production companies.

"Weakness in two big steel consuming industries, autos and construction, has been particularly troublesome for the steelmakers.

"However, there is evidence that steel inventories are gradually being worked off to low levels. There are also signs that economic activity in China, which is a huge consumer of steel, will not fall off as far as some economists initially feared.

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT - option chain) shares are headed higher today after the company announced it may close two of its Siberian coal mines temporarily in order to reduce costs during the economic downturn. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on MT.

MT opened this morning at $19.41. So far today the stock has hit a low of $18.54 and a high of $19.49. As of 11:30, MT is trading at $19.09, up 1.41 (8.0%). The chart for MT looks neutral.

Analyst upgrades:

• Piper upgraded shares of Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) to Buy from Neutral following the company's negative Q3 pre-announcement as it believes the launch of Pre will drive longer term profitability. Piper raised its target price on shares to $10 from $4.
  
• Jefferies upgraded Monotype Imaging (NASDAQ: TYPE) to Buy from Hold as it believes the valuation is compelling at current levels and the company's debt is manageable. Despite upgrading, Jefferies lowered its target price to $4 from $6.
  
• Citigroup raised Arcelor Mittal (NYSE: MT) to Hold from Sell as it believes the company's productions cuts and lower dividends are positive.
• Celanese (NYSE: CE) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman and added to the firm's Conviction Buy List.
  
• Aegon (NYSE: AEG) was lifted at UBS to Neutral from Sell.
  
• Sun Healthcare (NASDAQ: SUNH) was upgraded at Stephens to Overweight from Equal Weight.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) shares to Buy from Hold on valuation following the recent sell-off as they believe weakening fundamentals have been factored into estimates and that Blue Nile should benefit from the recent softening of diamond prices. The firm raised its target price to $30 from $20.
  
• Baird upgraded AmSurg (NASDAQ: AMSG) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation, potential upside from in-line results, good visibility, and FCF yield.
  
• Oppenheimer upgraded DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS) to Perform from Underperform on valuation following the recent weakness and believes the company is at least halfway through its $500M equity offering.
• UAL Corp (NASDAQ: UAUA) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.
  
• Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
  
• Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was lifted at Deutsche Bank to Buy from Hold.

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

• Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) posted a Q1 loss and announced a workforce reduction.
• ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) swung to it's first ever quarterly loss due to lower demand and a big write-down.
• Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) shares surged after it posted strong Q4 results.
• Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) posted better-than-expected Q4 earnings as revenue surged.
• Genzyme Corp. (NASDAQ: GENZ) topped Q4 earnings estimates, sending shares higher.
• Global Traffic Network Inc. (NASDAQ: GNET) weaker-than-expected Q2 results led to a downgrade.
• Level 3 Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT) shares fell despite its upside surprise for Q4.
• Lions Gate Entertainment (NYSE: LGF) posted a bigger-than-expected Q3 loss despite revenue growth.

Before the bell: Stocks to rebound, but investors remain cautious

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) swung to a surprising $2.6 billion loss in the fourth quarter -- its first ever -- as it experienced a collapse in demand and a sharp drop in prices. It wrote down $4.4 billion in pre-tax charges. The steel giant is also shedding some 9,000 workers. MT shares jumped over 6% in premarket trade.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) warned late Tuesday that chipmakers will spend 50% less this year for its products. The maker of semiconductor production equipment also posted a fiscal first-quarter loss of $3 million, excluding charges, and said it will cut 14% of its workforce, or about 2,000 jobs, as well as production. AMAT shares declined some 2% in premarket trade.

It's about that time again: Pepsi vs. Coke. No, not another taste test or another Battle of the Brands. It's time for the next quarterly results from these two soft drink titans.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters anticipate that PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP), global beverage and snack food giant, will report fourth-quarter earnings this week that are 9.1% higher that a year ago, or $0.88 per share. Revenue is expected to total $12.8 billion, which is 3.9% higher than last year. For the full year, the profit is expected to be $3.67 per share on revenue of $43.4 billion, up from $3.38 per share on $39.5 billion in 2007. PepsiCo's earnings met or beat estimates in four of the past five quarters, but missed by only two cents per share in the third quarter. The consensus recommendation of analysts remains to buy PEP. The share price fell to a 52-week low in January and is now 24.4% lower than it was a year ago. During the fourth quarter, PepsiCo declared a $0.42 per share quarterly dividend, agreed to acquire a Spitz International, and announced investments in China and Mexico.

Analyst upgrades:

• Oppenheimer upgraded AmerisourceBergen (NYSE:ABC) to Outperform from Perform on the company's strong branded drug price inflation, potential for greater than expected buybacks, and their belief that prescription volume growth will stabilize after Q1. The firm raised their target to $45 from $36.
  
• Baird upgraded Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation following reaffirmed guidance.
  
• Goldman removed shares of Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) from its Conviction Sell List and upgraded it to Neutral from Sell based on valuation.
• Teppco Partners (NYSE:TPP) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
  
• Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) was raised to Buy from Hold at Canaccord.
  
• Coca Cola Femsa (NYSE: KOF)) was upgraded at Morgan Stanley to Overweight from Equal Weight.

Analyst downgrades:

• RBC Capital downgraded Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares to Underperform from Sector Perform and lowered their target to $70 from $125 following the announcement that CEO Steve Jobs is taking a medical leave of absence. The analyst expects shares to be pressured by reduced earnings growth expectations and near-term leadership uncertainty.
  
• Barclays downgraded Motorola (NYSE:MOT) to Equal Weight from Overweight as they do not expect handset recovery for at least 6 to 9 months.
  
• Banc of America/Merrill downgraded Shire (NASDAQ:SHPGY) to Underperform from Buy based on earnings risk from the upcoming generic launch of Adderall XR.
• Royal Caribbean (NYSE:RCL) was added to Goldman's Conviction Sell List.
  
• Starent Networks (NASDAQ:STAR) and Ceragon Networks (NASDAQ:CRNT) were downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.
  
• Casella Waste (NASDAQ:CWST) was lowered at JP Morgan to Neutral from Overweight.

Analyst initiations:

• Citigroup initiated Cliffs Natural (NYSE:CLF) with a Buy rating and $43 target. The firm believes the company's multi-tier North American contract sales arrangements should allow it weather the volatility in the spot and seaborne markets and the firm expects volumes to improve in Q2.
  
• ING started Arcelor Mittal (NYSE:MT) with a Sell rating and believes the economic slowdown will have a greater than expected impact on the steel industry.
  
• Friedman Billings believes weakness in M&T Bank's (NYSE:MTB) regional economy could hinder the company's growth prospects and the firm is concerned about the bank's concentration in commercial and industrial loans. The firm has an Underperform rating and $30 target on the stock.
• S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at Keefe Bruyette.
  
• RBC Capital initiated Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) with a Sector Perform rating and $61 target.

This post is part of our feature on Money Losers of 2008. See all 20.

Being number four on the Forbes list of wealthiest persons in the world can't be too bad. That's where British-Indian industrialist Lakshmi Mittal found himself earlier this year, up one place from the year before. His estimated $45 billion placed him just behind Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Carlos Slim. But that was before he lost $30.5 billion this year.

Now a resident of London, Mittal was the founder of steelmaker Mittal. Upon its merger with French steelmaker to become ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT), the world's largest steel producer, he became the new conglomerate's chairman and CEO. ArcelorMittal's stock price was up around $104 per share this past June. But after increased production cuts due to the sudden fall in demand for steel in the past six months, the price has since dropped to around $25 a share now. Mittal, who owns 43 percent of the company, has seen a commensurate drop in value.

Mittal had been pursuing the acquisition of a controlling stake in Dillinger Hütte, a German steelmaker, which would have helped shore up ArcelorMittal during these difficult global economic conditions. He had wanted to engineer a full takeover of Dillinger as a way to boost the overall technological capabilities of ArcelorMittal, but it didn't quite work out. As a sort of consolation prize, the company will receive about $1 billion for a portion of its stake in the German company.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Xilinx (NASDAQ: XLNX) to Buy from Hold and raised its target to $22 from $17 on valuation and the company's "diversified" business.
  
• Barclays expects Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ: STLD) to outperform in Q1 as investors become more comfortable with the company's balance sheet. Shares were upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Asset Acceptance (NASDAQ: AACC) to Market Perform from Underperform on valuation but lowered their target to $6 from $8.
• Blackrock (NYSE: BLK) and Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) were added to Goldman's Conviction Buy List.
  
• Lattice (NASDAQ: LSCC) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Analyst downgrades: