Analyst Upgrades

• Goldman upgraded Reliance Steel (RS) to buy from neutral and The Buckle (BKE) to neutral from sell.
• RAM Energy (RAME) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Rodman & Renshaw.
• RBC Capital upgraded H&E Equipment (HEES) and Cameco (CCJ) to outperform from sector perform, and Denison Mines (DNN) to sector perform from underperform.
• Alexandria Real Estate (ARE) was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• Investment Technology (ITG) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Wedbush.

Analyst Upgrades

• UBS said Martin Marietta's (MLM) Q2 showed evidence of leverage to a recovery and the firm views risk/reward in shares as attractive. Shares were upgraded to buy from neutral, but its price target was lowered to $96 from $101.
• Soleil upgraded Regis (RGS) to buy from hold after the company said it is exploring strategic options. The firm raised its target for shares to $26 from $14.
• Wunderlich upgraded Sirius XM Radio (SIRI) to buy from hold with a $1.50 price target following the company's Q2 results. The firm believes Sirius' product continues to resonate with healthier higher-end consumers and notes that CEO Mel Karmazin said a resolution could be reached with Howard Stern by the Q3 conference call.
• Magellan Midstream (MMP) was upgraded to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Savient (SVNT) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• EMS Tech (ELMG) was upgraded to buy from hold at Needham.

Sirius XM Radio (SIRI) shares opened lower Monday morning, pushing down near the $1 mark. But investors who have been watching this stock for a while know that it can give up a lot more before it shows signs of slowing down. SIRI is up a stunning 70% year to date, even while the broader market is in the red.

In fact, I think there's a tremendous buying opportunity in Sirius stock right now since shares have drawn back about 20% from a their high in the beginning of May.

What do you know. Sirius XM Radio (SIRI) on Thursday posted its first quarterly profit since the two satellite radio companies merged. This is after last week its stock finally managed to climb back above $1, a territory it didn't visit since September 2008.

Sirius posted a profit of $14.2 million, or less than one cent a share, driven by subscriber gains and cost-cutting. This compared with a year-earlier loss of $245.8 million, or eight cents. Analysts had expected a loss of 2 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Revenue grew 6% to $684 million, beating the analysts' forecast of $664 million.

Today was one of those days where many traders looked like and acted like they wanted to just lock in gains after what was the first full week for many traders in about three weeks. Yet shares stayed strong. Options expiration dates and a S&P rebalance brought in some added volatility and money managers are now scared to tell their clients that they are not all-in on stocks. So while markets were up most of the day, the real closing bell with all of today's events was something that felt as though it would be down to the wire.

Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 9,819.52 +35.60 (0.36%)
S&P 500 1,068.26 +2.77 (0.26%)
Nasdaq 2,132.86 +6.11 (0.29%)

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Over the past five years, shares of what is now Sirius XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) have declined from a high of $9 per share to their current price of less than 50 cents per share. Granted, most of that hasn't been CEO Mel Karmazin's fault, and he was able to stave off bankruptcy by engineering an 11th-hour loan from Liberty Media.

But still, is that really a track record that entitles the CEO to a raise? Mr. Karmazin's salary went from $1.25 million to $1.5 million, but that isn't even the worst part. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reports that "He also gets options to purchase 120 million shares, which he can exercise at 43 cents a share."

Despite us being on the heels of the big Russell indexes changing and despite the quarter-end being a day away, this was a boring day. A study showed a small decrease in online job advertisements, but that was the only item on the economic front. Oil traded higher and bond yields came down as traders are voting for more stability the rest of the year there.

Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 8,531.19 +92.80 (1.10%)
S&P 500 927.18 +8.28 (0.90%)
Nasdaq 1,843.34 +5.12 (0.28%)

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Today's late-day rally had a common theme throughout the day: less-bad economic data. This went from better housing data and CPI not showing any deflation fears. The Beige Book was also showing that some of the 12 Fed regions are seeing a decline in the slowdown. Here are today's unofficial closing levels, which were essentially around the highs of the day:

Dow 8,029.62 +109.44 (1.38%)
S&P 500 852.06 +10.56 (1.25%)
Nasdaq 1,626.80 +1.08 (0.07%)

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Today ended up on an unofficial closing bell basis (official DJIA level may change as late as 4:30), but that was not the case all day and the "win" felt more mixed than like another consecutive rally.

But a win is a win no matter how sloppy it gets. The US Deficit has reached a record $765 billion in just five months. And here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 6,930.40 +3.91 (0.06%)
S&P 500 721.36 +1.76 (0.24%)
Nasdaq 1,371.64 +13.36 (0.98%)

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52-Week Lows

What was the reason for today's sell-off? Well, the answer is the same as it has been too many days: A culmination of bad news, weak data, bankruptcies, worries about banks and institutions, and that this recession is going to go on much longer than what the market is hoping for.

You might see the same explanation tomorrow if there is another sell-off. And next week. It is the same one from January and the same one from most of last year. Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 7,554.28 -296.13 (-3.77%)
S&P 500 789.35 -37.49 (-4.53%)
Nasdaq 1,470.66 -63.70 (-4.15%)

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Stern fans, breathe easy! In breaking news this morning, SIRIUS XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) and Liberty Media Corp. (NASDAQ: LMDIA) have reached a deal that will save the satellite radio company (for now) from the brink of bankruptcy.

Liberty will invest $530 million in SIRI, kicking off with a first phase: a senior secured loan worth $280 million, $250 million of which will be paid out today.

In response, Liberty will assume two spots on the SIRIUS XM board and receive 12.5 million shares of preferred stock, convertible into 40% of common SIRI shares.

SIRI CEO Mel Karmazin, told reporters, "Liberty's investment is an important validation of what SIRIUS XM has already achieved and a vote of confidence in what we will achieve..."

In pre-market trading, SIRI shares have jumped more than 80% to 19 cents per share.

Beth Gaston Moon works for WeSeed.com. The above comments are not intended as trading or investment advice.

It is being reported that Sirius XM is preparing for bankruptcy and this could be the week it happens.

After reading numerous stories about Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI) posted by my colleagues here and elsewhere, and tossing in my own two cents (see GM/Chrysler or Sirius/XM: Two losers don't equal a winner and Sirius and XM: Two losers -- A follow-up), I was pondering what, if anything, might have been missed by analysts and investors alike that has hurt the success of this company. It may be something as simple as misjudging the size of the market.

The stock market is tough enough to navigate without having to deal with roadblocks that have nothing to do with corporate execution of a business plan or normal supply-and-demand dynamics for equity securities.

We make an investment on reasonable assumptions and take the risk that such assumptions pan out. What we can't do is foresee events that are totally outside of the control of the company, economy, or ourselves. For example, if we buy a stock of a company that utilizes acquisitions as part of its strategy, we can safely assume from past examples that the government will approve or disapprove such acquisitions in a reasonable amount of time.

As each month passes, more and more companies get into the kind of trouble that pushes them toward Chapter 11 or insolvency. Some of the companies that hit that point several months ago include Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) and Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR).

In the next several months two or three large companies could be added to the list.

Advanced Micros Devices (NYSE: AMD) posted a narrow loss last quarter compared with the same quarter a year ago, but a third of its revenue disappeared. If PC and server sales get worse, its sales could shrink faster than the company can cut costs. The firm's gross margins are dropping fast and AMD has long term debt of over $4.7 billion.

Citigroup (NYSE: C) still faces the prospects that it could be nationalized if it posts more huge losses in the first quarter. Last week, its market cap dropped to $17 billion. A massive capital investment from the Treasury could wipe that equity out.

General Motors (NYSE: GM) may seem like an obvious choice, but its shares could go to zero faster than investors think. If the UAW or creditors walk away from restructuring talks, GM's attempt to cut its costs to get more government assistance based on a plan to be submitted on March 31 would be ruined.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Almost two years ago I posted a downbeat opinion about a merger that went through and one that did not. However the latter is being discussed again, unbelievable! SEE: GM/Chrysler or Sirius/XM: Two losers don't equal a winner.

In the story I rant about all the things that would improve General Motors (NYSE: GM) and where it is lacking -- noting that being bigger and having more models, less focus and more debt, are not among them. Eventually Cerberus made the big bet and lost. You can be sure they would like to play that hand over again.

Now all three U.S. car companies are in trouble with billions of dollars of losses and huge debt overhangs. All three begged for, and received some amount of federal relief and will need more to sustain themselves though 2009 as it proves to be every bit as tough as 2008 was. Despite everything, GM and Chrysler have been pondering a merger again. BAD IDEA! GM does not need the distraction, they need more focus -- nothing but intense focus!