Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) continues to get a bad rap from the media along with a slow growth rate from customers (or even a net loss of customers), but in spite of all the negative news surrounding the company, its stock was upgraded from "Sell" to "Hold" this week by Soleil Securities Group.

The analyst who upgraded Sprint shares noted that Sprint's Q3 numbers, while not very good, were inline with analyst expectations. In addition, there has been a recent sell-off which signals a time to hold onto shares. Analyst Todd Rethemeier pegged shares at $16, an increase from $15. He also said that risk associated with Sprint's shares has shifted and is priced into the stock at current levels.

Although Rethemeier advised covering short positions in Sprint shares, he did indicate that any turnaround may take 18 to 24 months. Also, Sprint must find a new CEO after sacking former CEO Gary Forsee for quarter after quarter of bad performance and a flagging share price.

Rethemeier said he has little confidence in interim CEO Paul Saleh to "turn the company around," so the telecom company's next CEO has quite a task to perform. I agree with Rethemeier in that Sprint needs an outsider here to come in and shake the company from the ground up.