Banks were sick for a while. Some of them died (41 in the third quarter alone, a total of 127 so far this year), quickly taken over by the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.), transferring their ticket to ride to another institution that changed the name on the front door (but kept the FDIC sticker) over a weekend. More will evaporate. There are currently 860 on the FDIC's list of problem institutions as of September 30. That compares to 829 at the end of June. But the latest bank profits suggest the worst is over for the banking sector.

Analyst Upgrades

• Piper Jaffray upgraded Salesforce.com (CRM) to overweight from neutral, citing valuation following the recent sell-off and strong business trends. The firm has a $115 price target for shares.
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded M&T Bank (MTB) to market perform from underperform on valuation after AIB sold its stake in the company. The firm has a $72 price target for shares.
• Jefferies upgraded OGE Energy (OGE) to buy from hold following the announcement that ArcLight will purchase 9.9% of OGE's interest in Enogex for $183M and believes this deal highlights the hidden value associated with Enogex. The firm raised its price target to $51.50 from $43.
• Thomas & Betts (TNB) was upgraded to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
• Bayer (BAYRY) was upgraded to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Texas Roadhouse (TXRH) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Baird.

Analyst Upgrades

• UBS upgraded UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX) to buy from hold based on recent weakness and leverage to a recovery. The firm raised its price target on UPS to $74 from $72 and on FedEx to $100 from $97.
• Bernstein upgraded Medicis (MRX) to outperform from market perform based on valuation and said the company has been executing well over the past few months. The firm has a $28 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Weingarten Realty (WRI) to buy from hold, citing valuation and the company's improved balance sheet. The firm maintains a $24 price target for shares.
• Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) were upgraded to market perform from underperform at BMO Capital.
• NextEra Energy (NEE) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Baird.
• Nokia (NOK) was upgraded to neutral from reduce at WestLB.

Analyst Upgrades

• BofA/Merrill upgraded Eastman Chemical (EMN) to buy from neutral and raised its target to $82 from $80. The analyst upgraded shares based on valuation and expectations for strong earnings from fibers and performance chemicals.
• Bernstein upgraded Hershey (HSY) to market perform from underperform based on strong near-term category growth.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Actuant (ATU) to buy from neutral with a $25 price target following the company's Q3 results.
• Infinera (INFN) was upgraded to buy from hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
• CTC Media (CTCM) was upgraded to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Williams (WMB) was upgraded to conviction buy from buy at Goldman.

The editor of The Moneypaper explains, "The pair developed a Net Current Asset Value (NCAV) model to determine if a company was worth its market price. Their formula subtracts all liabilities, including short-term debt and preferred stock, from a company's current asset balance"

Analyst Upgrades

• UBS upgraded Boeing (BA) to neutral from sell, citing increased delivery forecasts. The firm raised its target to $68 from $50.
• Benchmark Co. upgraded Meredith Corp. (MDP) to buy from hold to reflect improving broadcasting and magazine advertising fundamentals. The firm raised its target for shares to $40 from $36.
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Transatlantic (TRH) to market perform from underperform after the annual statutory data was published. The firm raised its target for shares to $51 from $4.
• Disney (DIS) was upgraded to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Royal Caribbean (RCL) was upgraded to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• FedEx (FDX) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Morgan Keegan.

Last week, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) led off the coming parade of earnings from the big banks when it reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter and full-year earnings, though its revenue fell short of estimates.

Plenty more earnings from the financial sector are due out this week. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters anticipate fourth-quarter earnings growth from American Express Co. (AXP), Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (BK), Hudson City Bancorp Inc. (HCBK), SLM Corp. (SLM) and US Bancorp (USB).

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

• Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) Q3 earnings beat by a penny but sales fell short of expectations; shares fell.
• AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) reported a Q3 net loss and plunging revenue but also raised $4 billion in cash.
• BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT) topped Q3 earnings expectations but said bad-loan provisions nearly doubled.
• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) missed estimates and posted a Q3 loss due to delays for a couple of jet products.
• Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) shares rose after it reported better-than-expected Q3 numbers.
• Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) posted a better-than-expected Q3 profit but sales fell short, and shares fell.

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded M&T Bank (NYSE: MTB) to Market Perform from Underperform following the Q3 results to reflect the company's improved earnings outlook and better credit trends. The firm has a $70 price target on shares.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) to Buy from Hold as it believes a bottom has been reached in the manufacturing and construction industries. The firm raised its target on shares to $30 from $26.
• Goldman upgraded Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) to Neutral from Sell and raised its target to $64 from $48 citing improved cost controls and construction outlook.
• Pentair (NYSE: PNR) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at KeyBanc.
• Lexmark (NYSE: LXK) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Stryker (NYSE: SYK) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at BofA/Merrill.

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

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) narrowed its net loss in Q2 but not as much as expected.
• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) posted better-than-expected Q3 results on demand for iPhones and Macs.
• Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) reported earnings and revenue that topped expectations.
• JDA Software Group Inc. (NASDAQ: JDAS) shares surged after it reported record results for Q2.
• Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) lower Q4 results still topped earnings estimates, but shares fell.
• VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) unimpressive Q2 results still managed to beat analysts' low expectations.
• Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) Q2 profit was flat year over year and revenue and cash flow declined.

• Canaccord upgraded Imperial Oil (NYSE: IMO) to Buy from Speculative Buy following an increase in crude oil forecast.
• BT Group (NYSE: BT) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Bernstein.
  
• Novartis (NYSE: NVS) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
  
• CommVault (NASDAQ: CVLT) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.
  
• AvalonBay (NYSE: AVB) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Sandler O'Neill.

Analyst Upgrades

• Baird upgraded Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) to Outperform from Neutral based on field research that indicates improving traffic trends and visibility from cost savings initiatives.
• FBR Capital upgraded E*Trade (NASDAQ: ETFC) to Outperform from Underperform citing an attractive risk/reward following the company's capital raise and debt exchange commencement. The firm believes the worst is behind the company and has a $2 target on the stock.
• Oppenheimer upgraded Sonic (NASDAQ: SONC) to Outperform from Perform on expectations demand trends will improve, leading to more normalized profitability.
• Estee Lauder (NYSE: EL) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Barclays.
• Motorola (NYSE: MOT) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• ConAgra (NYSE: CAG) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Analyst upgrades:

• UBS upgraded Target (NYSE: TGT) to Buy from Neutral and raised its price target to $52 from $45 citing reduced inventories, some credit stability, and an improved back-to-school period.
• Credit Suisse said concerns regarding Safeway's (NYSE: SWY) price position are overblown and that earnings risk is limited. The firm upgraded shares to Outperform from Neutral and raised the target price to $25 from $22.
• Oppenheimer upgraded Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) to Outperform from Perform as it believes the story is underappreciated following the recent sector rally. The firm has a $14 price target on the stock.
• CME Group (NASDAQ: CME) was upgraded to buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
• Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at FTN Equity.