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

• CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) reported that Q3 revenue was flat while earnings and cash flow declined.
• Clorox Co. (NYSE: CLX) reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, helped by healthy gross margins.
• Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) posted better-than-expected Q3 earnings with modest revenue growth.
• Dean Foods Co. (NYSE: DF) Q3 revenue missed estimates but earnings came in better than expected.
• Expeditors International of Washington Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPD) traded lower after its Q3 earnings miss.
• Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN) beat earnings estimates in the week after the Google Navigation launch.

While the debate over health care reform rages on, hospital operator Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) said Tuesday it swung to a loss in the third quarter, one day after health insurer Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) posted a 65% jump in its third-quarter profit.

Tenet said it lost $3 million, or a penny per share. That compares with a profit of $104 million, or 22 cents per share, a year earlier. But, Tenet reported a one-time gain of $140 million a year ago after selling investments.

Analyst upgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Popular (NASDAQ: BPOP) to Outperform from Market Perform as it believes the issuance of new common stock in exchange for outstanding preferred and trust preferred stock is a net positive. The firm has a $3.50 target on the stock.
• Merriman upgraded Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ: SMCI) to Buy from Neutral as if finds the currrent valuation compelling and believes the company should directly benefit from improving IT budgets. The firm thinks fair value is in the $9.11-$11.13 range.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) to Buy from Hold after its proprietary survey indicated the company is well positioned longer term. The firm finds the valuation on shares attractive at current levels and raised its target price to $53 from $48.
• Taleo (NASDAQ: TLEO) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.
• Boardwalk Pipeline (BWP) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• Lloyds Banking (NYSE: LYG) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at RBS.

Analyst upgrades:

• Baird upgraded Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $6 from $5 based on cost trends, valuation, and expectations the company can beat expectations over the next six months.
• Oppenheimer upgraded E-House (NYSE: EJ) to Outperform from Perform following the company's better-than-expected Q2 results. The firm has a price target of $27 on shares.
• JPMorgan upgraded Avery Dennison (NYSE: AVY) to Overweight from Neutral and has a $33 target on the stock. The firm cites valuation for the upgrade following the recent underperformance and expects the company's margins to expand as demand rebounds.
• Citigroup (NYSE: C) was upgraded to Buy from Underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• Taubman Centers (NYSE: TCO) was upgraded to Conviction Buy from Buy at Goldman.
• First Niagara (NASDAQ: FNFG) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Sonus Networks (NASDAQ: SONS) to Buy from Hold on valuation as they find the risk/reward compelling at current levels. Jefferies has a $2 target on the stock.
  
• Dresdner upgraded HSBC (NYSE: HBC) to Buy from hold on valuation as they believe the dividend cut is fully priced in at current levels.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded Barnes & Noble (NYSE: BKS) to Neutral from Underweight on valuation as they recommend short positions take profits at current levels.
• Kellogg (K) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
  
• RPM, Inc (NYSE: RPM) and Valspar (NYSE: VAL) were upgraded at KeyBanc to Buy from Hold.
  
• Omnicare (NYSE: OCR) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.

Analyst downgrades:

• Jefferies downgraded Dune Energy (AXE: DNE) to Underperform from Hold to reflect weak commodity prices and the company's reduced financial flexibility. The firm lowered its target price to 10c from 30c.
• Baird downgraded NeuStar (NYSE: NSR) to Neutral from Outperform and lowered their target to $20 from $22 based on 2009 revenue concerns and the CFO's departure.
  
• UBS cut Viacom (NYSE: VIA) to Neutral from Buy and lowered its target to $18 from $27. The firm believes advertising declines will be worst than expected and that Film expectations are too high.
• Goldcorp (NYSE: GG) was lowered to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.
  
• Kindred Healthcare (NYSE: KND) and Tenet Healthcare (THC) were downgraded at Barclays to Equal Weight from Overweight.
  
• Cynosure (NASDAQ: CYNO) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Citigroup.

Analyst initiations:

• Keefe Bruyette believes Blackstone's (NYSE: BX) operating results and cash flow generation are likely to remain depressed well into 2009 given the weakening economy. The firm started shares with a Market Perform rating and $6 target.
  
• Oppenheimer views Brinks (NYSE: BCO) as a pure-play secure logistics company and feels it is well positioned to take advantage of a recent decline in acquisition prices. The firm has an Outperform rating and $32 target on the stock.
• Kellogg (NYSE: K) was initiated with a Buy rating and $52 target at Janney Montgomery.
• Avery Dennison (NYSE: AVY) was started at Barclays with an Equal Weight rating.
• Medco Health (NYSE: MHS) was initiated with a Market Perform rating and $59 target at Bernstein.

Analyst upgrades:

• Barclays upgraded the Integrated Oil sector to Positive from Neutral citing valuations. Note that Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight based on valuation.
  
• After Force Protection (NASDAQ: FRPT) reported that its 1H08 sales increased more than 200%, Stanford thinks that Force Protection could be poised for several new opportunities in 2009 and they believe the company's risk is already priced into the stock; the firm raised Force Protection to Hold from Sell.
  
• Cowen expects eHealth (NASDAQ: EHTH) to benefit from the steady decline in employer-sponsored health insurance offered by small businesses and reduced regulatory risk, among other reasons. The firm upgraded shares to Outperform from Neutral.
• Allied Capital (NYSE: ALD) was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at BMO Capital.
  
• Caris upgraded Carmike Cinemas (NASDAQ: CKEC) to Above Average from Average.
  
• International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE: IFF) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.

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

• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) earnings prospects may have encouraged the machinist union to strike.
• Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) Q3 results and weak guidance led shares to a new 52-week low.
• Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) lowered its Q3 earnings guidance below previous and analysts' forecasts.
• Dollar Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: DLLR) beat Q4 estimates and posted record 2008 results.
• Ericsson Telephone Co. (NASDAQ: ERIC) was downgraded because it could miss Q3 earnings expectations.
• Esterline Technologies (NYSE: ESL) topped Q3 expectations due to robust aerospace and defense markets.
• Joy Global Inc. (NASDAQ: JOYG) posted strong Q3 results due to a sharp increase in orders.
• Kraft Foods Inc. (NYSE: KFT) backed away somewhat from its previous 2008 earnings guidance.
• Legg Mason Inc. (NYSE: LM) earnings prospects for the next several quarters led to an analyst downgrade.
• MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) mid quarter update warned of declining demand for chips.
• Navistar International Corp. (NYSE: NAV) was upgraded following a strong Q3 report.
• New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT) ongoing losses haven't diminished Rupert Murdoch's interest in it.
• Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) warned that it would miss earnings estimates due in part to weak sales.
• Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: SNDA) better-than-expected Q2 led to an analyst upgrade.
• Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) Q2 earnings slipped while revenues rose, beating expectations.
• Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) Q3 results soared but cut its Q4 guidance.
• Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) was upgraded on its prospects for beating expectations.
• Terex Corp. (NYSE: TEX) warned that earnings for Q3 and Q4 would be lower than estimates.
• Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) posted better-than-expected Q2 results and offered full-year guidance.
• Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) reported its fourth straight quarterly loss, but it was smaller than expected.

Also, Jim Cramer discusses a decline in earnings resulting from a collapse of oil and oil services.

Upcoming quarterly reports include Korn/Ferry (NYSE: KFY), Pep Boys (NYSE: PBY), Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB), Krispy Kreme (NYSE: KKD), and Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ: LULU).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

Analyst upgrades:

• Goldman upgraded shares of BP Plc (NYSE: BP) to Buy from Neutral on valuation as they believe the recent pullback provides an attractive entry point.
  
• VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse citing its acquisition platform and international growth. The company's target was increased to $100 from $88.
  
• Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) to Buy from Hold and increased its target to $8.50 from $7 to reflect increased confidence in the company's ability to beat expectations over the next 12 months and reduce its net debt.
• US Steel (NYSE: X) was raised to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer at CIBC.
  
• United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) was upgraded at UBS to Buy from Neutral.

Analyst downgrades:

In this series, we take a look at the 25 stocks on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) that have turned in the worst performance during the past decade -- what went wrong, and what happens next.

Former hippies might notice that the ticker symbol for Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) is also the acronym for the active compound in marijuana, but this apparent inattention to detail is likely the least of the company's concerns. When Tenet was formed in 1995, it was born out of a merger between American Medical International and scandal-plagued National Medical Enterprises. Executives at the newly reborn healthcare services company hoped that its new name would help erase any unpleasant investor associations with its previous incarnation.

What went wrong? At number 19 on our list of SPX losers, THC shed 73% of its value during the 10-year period ending June 30, 2008. Prior to a stomach-churning sell-off in the fall of 2002, the shares were entrenched in a near-vertical uptrend that peaked at $52.50. It seems that a seedy healthcare services company by any other name ...

October 2002 marked the stock's peak, as well as the beginning of its steep descent. First, the company reported fiscal first-quarter earnings that surpassed analysts' estimates by 2 cents per share. A few weeks later, Tenet was named co-defendant in a lawsuit filed by the widow of a man who'd accepted an artificial heart, which she alleged "stripped him of his human dignity." This relatively minor suit, worth just $100,000, wouldn't break THC -- but it nonetheless heralded the beginning of the end. Toward the end of the month, the shares tumbled sharply after an analyst downgraded Tenet and warned that it was too dependent on Medicare reimbursements from the government.

Dragged down by the challenging market conditions, many stocks have fallen under $10 lately. CNBC's Cindy Perman suggests that some of these stocks could be become good investments for traders. However, not everything that is cheap could be such a good bargain, Perman reminds us. You must always do your homework on potential investment before buying.

For example, Ford Motor (NYSE: F) fell down to around $6 compared with $38 nine years ago -- is it a good investment? Well, while the automaker revealed its plans to shift production from trucks to cars and give a boost to its turnaround plan, it also warned it won't be profitable until 2010 at the earliest.

Perman quotes several investment specialists on the matter. John Schloegel, vice president of investment strategies at Capital Cities Asset Management says, "An investment in Ford today feels like being in the wrong place at the wrong time." And Greg Womack, president of Womack Investment Advisers, advices to stay away from the sector, which doesn't look promising now, for the next three to five years to find out the "winner."

MOST NOTEWORTHY: BP Plc, Tenet Healthcare Franklin Resources were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Lehman upgraded shares of BP Plc (NYSE:BP) to Equal Weight from Underweight on valuation and positive benefits from the company's TNK joint venture in Russia.
  
• Lehman also upgraded Tenet Healthcare (NYSE:THC) to Overweight from Equal Weight, citing increased confidence the company can meet guidance following the company's analyst day.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) to Outperform from Market Perform as they believe flow trends have improved.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Goldman added Allied Waste (NYSE:AW) to its Conviction Buy List.
  
• China Unicom (NYSE:CHU) and China Netcom (NYSE:CN) were raised to Hold from Sell at Deutsche Bank.
  
• UBS upgraded Ryland (NYSE:RYL) to Buy from Neutral.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Overseas Shipholding, Tenet Healthcare and Luxottica were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Bear upgraded Overseas Shipholding Group (NYSE: OSG) to Outperform from Peer Perform following its Q4 results, citing seasonal strength.
  
• Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) was upgraded to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies after quarterly operating trends showed signs of stabilization.
  
• Goldman raised Luxottica Group (NYSE: LUX) to Buy from Neutral and added shares to their Conviction Buy List as they find the valuation attractive at current levels.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• UBS raised Telefonica (NYSE: TEF) to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Goldman added El Paso Pipeline Partners (NYSE: EPB) to its Conviction Buy List.
  
• Royal Ahold (OTC: AHONY) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

The short interest for the NYSE is out for the second half of September. The NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) actually showed a small increase in the total shares short on the NYSE: the September 28 settlement short interest was 11,878,834,897, above the 11,841,051,529 reading of September 14, 2007. This represents 3.1% of the total shares outstanding.

The raw truth is that this is actually a very small gain of only just over 37,000,000 shares. But it follows what was a large drop from mid-August to mid September as mid-August was in the midst of the market malaise with 12,466,511,521 shares listed as being short. Just at the end of last month I had noted that short selling Internet stocks showed mixed results. There had previously been a large drop in major banking stock short interest, but we also showed how housing and retail stocks had been under short selling pressure.

You can see the full list of the September 28 settlement date short stocks at the site, but here are the top 10 (with short interest):

• iShares Russel 2000 Index (NYSE: IWM) 258,152,676
• Ford Motor (NYSE: F) 177,621,324
• Qwest Communications (NYSE: Q) 84,338,020
• Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) 76,350,102
• Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) 76,100,928
• General Electric (NYSE: GE) 65,851,636
• Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) 64,874,719
• Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) 62,259,216
• Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) 57,387,316
• General Motors (NYSE: GM) 56,515,532

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Celgene (CELG), Sysco (SYY), Kinetic Concepts (KCI), BioMimtic Therapeutics (BMTI) and Lifecell Corp (LIFC) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• William Blair believes Celgene (NASDAQ: CELG) has the best growth profile in large-cap biotechnology and initiated shares with an Outperform rating.

• Citigroup views Sysco (NYSE: SYY) as the dominant leader in the foodservice distribution industry, initiating shares with a Buy rating, and feels the company will continue to take market share from its peers. The firm thinks the current valuation reflects the perception that Sysco may perform poorly in the near-term, which they disagree with.

• Wachovia started Kinetic Concepts (NYSE: KCI) with a Market Perform, citing competitive pressures and mature markets for its rating.

• Wachovia is positive on BioMimetic Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BMTI), initiating shares with an Outperform, based on strong rhPDGF technology, strategy, and management team.

• Wachovia is positive on Lifecell Corp's (NASDAQ: LIFC) Strattice, a porcine tissue matrix, which improves the company's international exposure and provides opportunities in new markets, initiating shares with an Outperform...

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Credit Suisse initiated Community Health (NYSE: CYH) and Universal Health (NYSE: UHS) with Outperform ratings, LifePoint (NASDAQ: LPNT) with a Neutral rating, and Health Management (NYSE: HMA) and Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) with Underperform ratings.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Amazon.com (AMZN), Luminent Mortgage (LUM), Whole Foods (WFMI), Tenet Healthcare (THC) and Pediatrix Medical (PDX) were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Bernstein upgraded Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) to Outperform from Market Perform, citing margins on 3rd party transactions that are close to eBay's (EBAY) and that the overseas merchants initiative will increase 3rd party units to 25% of sales. The move is expected to increase operating margins to 6.2% by 2011, above the previously expected improvement of 4.6% by the same time.

• JMP Securities said Luminent Mortgage's (NYSE: LUM) $64.9M emergency financing from Arco Capital may preserve some value for shareholders, and upgraded shares to Market Underperform from Sell.

• JP Morgan added Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI) to its Focus List, and expects the Wild Oats (NASDAQ: OATS) acquisition to be a catalyst for shares.

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC) to Hold from Sell.

• Matrix USA raised Pediatrix Medical (NYSE: PDX) to Buy from Hold, citing valuation...

OTHER UPGRADES:

• AGL Resources (NYSE: ATG) and Atmos Energy (NYSE: ATO) were upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Calyon.

• Rowan Co (NYSE: RDC) was upgraded to Outperform from Peer Perform at Bear Stearns.

• Goldman raised O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ: ORLY) to Buy from Neutral.

• BMO Capital upgraded General Mills (NYSE: GIS) to Outperform from Market Perform.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).