Analyst Upgrades

• HSBC upgraded Massey Energy (MEE) to overweight from neutral based on improved 2011 pricing power given industry supply-side discipline. Despite the upgrade, the firm cuts its price target to $40 from $54.
• Needham upgraded Blue Coat Systems (BCSI) to buy from hold following yesterday's announcement that Michael J. Borman has been named the new CEO. The firm has a $27 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Teekay Offshore Partners (TOO) to buy from hold after the company announced shuttle tanker contracts to reflect improved operating performance. The firm raised its target for shares to $26 from $15.
• Prosperity Bancshares (PRSP) was upgraded to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Ceradyne (CRDN) was upgraded to buy from hold at Benchmark Co.
• CTC Media (CTCM) was upgraded to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.

Hewlett Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) sees a large future in storage. By acquiring Ibrix, Inc., HP will be taking advantage of an acquisition in an economic downturn that could turn into a stroke of genius when the economy recovers and businesses of all sizes start producing reams of data -- data which must be stored somewhere. Data centers with ever-growing digital storage needs won't stop growing for some time. Think about it -- when you buy a new PC, don't you want as much hard drive storage as possible?