Analyst upgrades:

• RBC Capital upgraded Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) to Outperform from Sector Perform and said the company has attractive franchise value and earnings power, and is nearing the start of a credit driven earnings recovery. The firm raised its target to $22 from $19.
• Oppenheimer assumed coverage of Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) and upgraded shares to Outperform from Perform. The firm expects Amazon's revenue growth to re-accelerate over the next several quarters, making consensus estimates too conservative. Opco set a $130 price target on the stock.
• Barclays upgraded Ford (NYSE: F) to Equal Weight from Underweight and believes the company will report Q3 results above the Street. The firm raised its Q3 EPS estimate to 7 cents from 16 cents, vs. consensus of 21 cents, and its price target to $8 from $7.
• Charles River Labs (NYSE: CRL) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.
• Briggs & Stratton (NYSE: BGG) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• Sealed Air (NYSE: SEE) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Barclays.

Leading online travel site Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) is perhaps best known for its pitchman, pop culture icon William Shatner. But to in-the-know investors, this stock is more known for booking big profits.

Now you might think that with the country in a recession, online travel stocks wouldn't be doing very well. But actually, the opposite is true.

According to a recent article in Investor's Business Daily, many corporate travel managers have been forced to cut the cost of basic travel expenses due to the recession. "Firms are telling execs to move their seats from the front to the back of the plane -- and to find budget-class hotel rooms." Bingo!

As many shoppers have realized in this recession, just because something is cheap doesn't mean it's a bargain.

This is especially true in the stock market, where you definitely get what you pay for.

There have been plenty of low-priced deals on stocks lately, as plenty of good companies watched their shares take a beating in our economic crisis. But that doesn't mean all cheap stocks are worth buying. Unless that bargain goes up in value, it's not a bargain.

President Obama started an intense debate in recent months about national health care. People are concerned about how to pay for the high cost of health care in America and feel it is just too expensive. There has to be a better way!

I like oranges and I grew up in Wisconsin, but in January oranges do not grow very well in Wisconsin. I don't know why -- I am not a horticulturalist -- but maybe it's the lack of sunlight, hard frozen tundra, blowing snow or temperatures of 25 below zero. We could spend a long time pointlessly debating the actual reason.

Analyst upgrades:

• Oppenheimer upgraded Gymboree (NASDAQ: GYMB) to Outperform from Perform following the company's Q2 results to reflect valuation and square footage growth from Crazy 8. The firm has a $52 target on the stock.
• KeyBanc upgraded Lululemon (NASDAQ: LULU) to Buy from Hold on expectations sales and margins will improve in the near-term due to clean inventory levels. The firm recommends a pair trade of long Lululemon, short Under Armour (NYSE: UA).
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Allied Capital (NYSE: ALD) to Market Perform from Underperform following the company's Q2 results and raised its target on shares to $3.50 from $1.
• Jack in the Box (NASDAQ: JACK) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.
• LogMeln (NASDAQ: LOGM) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• Barclays (NYSE: BCS) was reinstated with an Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

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

• Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) posted better-than-expected Q3 results, sending shares higher.
• AutoDesk Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings, sending shares higher.
• Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI) had another disappointing quarter as same-store sales declined.
• CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) delayed its Q3 report due to ongoing debt restructuring and a possible bankruptcy.
• Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE: DPS) Q2 earnings came in well ahead of Wall Street expectations.

Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN), a web-based booking business that fights it out with Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE), was red-hot during yesterday's session. Shares closed higher by 14%. Volume rocked. The Q2 numbers were strong, and the market rewarded the results without hesitation.

Revenues increased 17%. According to TheStreet.com, adjusted profit of $2.02 per share walloped estimates. Wall Street was only booked for $1.79 per share. The analysts really missed this one. It's understandable, though. Whether we're close to the end of a recession or not is debatable, and I'm sure they wanted to be conservative with the models.

• Stephens upgraded Old Dominion Freight (NASDAQ: ODFL) to Overweight from Equal Weight to reflect the financial problems at YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW), which the firm believes could lead to market share gains. Stephens raised its target on Old Dominion Freight to $40 from $22.
• UBS expects SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWRA) to benefit from the U.S. residential solar segment as investment tax credits come available. The firm upgraded shares to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $38 from $26.
• KeyBanc upgraded DPL (NYSE: DPL) to Buy from Hold based on valuation and potential upside from the Ohio approval of the rate settlement, 2010 guidance, and potential to use cash flow for accretive purposes.
• Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) was upgraded to Conviction Buy from Buy at Goldman.
• Carnival (NYSE: CCL) was raised to Equal Weight from Underweight at Barclays.
• South Financial Group (NASDAQ: TSFG) was upgraded at SunTrust to Buy from Neutral.

"We screened our database for standouts based on meaningful profit surprises," says quantitative analyst Richard Moroney.

In Upside, a service focused on applying in-depth quantitative analysis to small to mid-cap growth companies, he looks at a trio of stocks earning his "Best Buy" rating -- Priceline (NASDAQ: PCLN), Sybase (NYSE: SY), and Synaptics (NASDAQ: SYNA).

"All things equal, the better a stock's earnings momentum and profit outlook, the more likely it is to outperform in the year ahead.

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

• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) reported dismal Q1 numbers as same-store sales plunged.
• Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) dismal Q2 results were in line with analysts' expectations.
• Bankrate Inc. (NASDAQ: RATE) reported lower earnings and revenue for Q1 and offered no guidance.
• Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI) earnings, revenue, and same-store sales all fell in the first quarter.
• Dr Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE: DPS) Q1 earnings declined but still topped analysts' expectations.

Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN), an online booking concern that competes with Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE), reported Q1 earnings on Monday. The stats were all right, I have to say.

Revenues increased over 14%. According to this article, earnings on an adjusted basis came to $1.09 per share. Analysts were looking for 93 cents per share. Year-ago adjusted income was 76 cents per share, according to the press release. Priceline not only expanded its bottom-line income, but it increased its net cash from operations. That figure went up by a nice 71%. Gross travel bookings as a whole jumped by over 10%. They did even better in the U.S. market.

As earnings season begins to wind down, some apparel retailers are scheduled to report quarterly results this week. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters anticipate that Walmart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), the 800-pound gorilla in the space, will report that it earned $0.77 per share in the first quarter, about the same as in the first quarter of last year. But JCPenney Co. (NYSE: JCP), Kohl's Corp. (NYSE: KSS), Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN), and Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) are expected to report lower profits for the first quarter as consumers continued to hold off on spending. Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) are expected to have swung to a loss year over year.

Whole Foods Market Inc. (NASDAQ: WFMI) and Winn Dixie Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: WINN) are likewise expected to report declining earnings, while the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (NYSE: GAP), parent of the A&P supermarket chain, is expected to have narrowed its net loss 68.9% to $0.28 per share.

Analyst upgrades:

• Merriman upgraded Dendreon (NASDAQ: DNDN) to Buy from Neutral on expectations shares will react positively to the full IMPACT data release on April 28. The firm thinks Provenge could represent the first cancer immunotherapy approved in the U.S. and raised its valuation range on the stock to $33-$34 from $18-$19.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Andersons (NASDAQ: ANDE) as it believes the valuation is attractive, investor expectations are low, and the company's fertilizer and rail segments could recovery in FY10. The firm has a $19 target on shares. Goldman upgraded the auto sector to Neutral from Cautious and added Ford (NYSE: F) to its Conviction Buy list. The analyst does not believe Ford will have to declare bankruptcy and sees the company benefiting from Chrysler share declines and GM's (NYSE: GM) reduced product offerings. Ford's price target is $6
• Banc of America/Merrill upgraded U.S. Airways (NYSE: LCC) to Buy from Underperform.
• Broadcom (NASDAQ: BRCM) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) was raised to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

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

• Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) reported that Q4 revenue soared despite the recession.
• Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) posted strong annual revenue, but at a slowing growth rate.
• Career Education Corp. (NASDAQ: CECO) easily topped Q4 earnings expectations, lifting shares up.
• Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Q4 earnings beat expectations and it increased its dividend.
• CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE: CVS) shares jumped after it reported higher earnings in Q4.
• Digital River Inc. (NASDAQ: DRIV) shares soared on better-than-expected Q4 earnings and revenue.
• Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) reported dismal results due to a huge good will write down.
• Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT) posted a greater-than-expected Q4 net loss and announced job cuts.
• Hormel Foods Corp. (NYSE: HRL) exceeded Q1 earnings expectations due to the popularity of SPAM.

Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE) did not have a good week. The online travel site, which competes with Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) for attention, reported abysmal earnings for the fourth quarter this past Thursday. The company suffered a huge loss of $9.60 per share. That's right, $9.60 per share! Kind of rocks your world, doesn't it? And not in a good way. I mean, Expedia's share price closed at $7.74 on Friday.

As you can imagine, there was an accounting issue going on (not that it should make shareholders feel any better, mind you). Expedia took a huge goodwill write-down related to the significant drop in the market capitalization of the business. We're talking $3 billion. Wow. Of course, management adjusted the earnings to represent what Expedia would have made without the charge. That would be $0.22 per share. Unfortunately, that missed expectations by two pennies.