MOST NOTEWORTHY: NutriSystem, Under Armour, CME Group, Air France ADS and Kilroy Realty were today's noteworthy upgrades:
NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) was upgraded to Strong Buy from Buy at Broadpoint on valuation, as they believe all concerns are overdone.
Think Equities upgraded Under Armour (NYSE: UA) to Buy from Accumulate on valuation.
Wachovia upgraded CME Group (NYSE: CME) to Overweight from Market weight, as they expect fed income volumes to benefit from a more active Federal Reserve.
Goldman added Air France (NYSE: AKH) to its Pan-European Conviction Buy List citing valuation following the recent sell-off.
Citigroup upgraded shares of Kilroy Realty (NYSE: KRC) to Buy from Hold on valuation, as they believe concerns are overblown and the company's underleveraged balance sheet can drive growth.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Omnicare, Masco, Smart Modular and VASCO Data Security were today's noteworthy downgrades:
Matrix downgraded shares of Omnicare (NYSE: OCR) to Hold from Buy to reflect the company's very weak performance and higher than average risk.
Merrill Lynch downgraded Masco Corp (NYSE: MAS) to Sell from Neutral to reflect expectations for a decline in U.S. housing starts and remodeling in 2008. The broker recommends swapping into Texas Industries (NYSE: TXI).
Smart Modular (NASDAQ: SMOD) was downgraded to Market Outperform from Strong Buy at JMP Securities following the Q4 pre-announcement.
VASCO Data Security (NASDAQ: VDSI) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Friedman Billings on valuation.
OTHER DOWNGRADES:
RAIT Financial Trust (NYSE: RAS) was downgraded to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital.
KMG America (NYSE: KMA) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Friedman Billings on valuation.
Higher interest rate are making commercial real estate deal makers think twice about deals, according to the Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street," sending shares of companies like Archstone-Smith Trust (NYSE: ASN) down from $64 to $60.75 a share.
The Financial Times reported that U.S. senators have proposed new laws that would impose higher taxes on private equity firms that list their shares on stock exchanges, a move that could be a blow to private-equity firm Blackstone Group, which is seeking to list its shares.
The U.S. and U.K. are working on a treaty that would allow Britain to buy American weapons without obtaining export licenses, the Financial Times reported; any deal on the issue could face opposition in the U.S. Congress, although the British believe eliminating the need for the licenses would expedite the arms purchasing process.
OTHER PAPERS:
Turnaround candidate Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE: EK) may be ready to shine, BusinessWeek's "Inside Wall Street" column reported, and now may be a good time to evaluate a potential EK play, according to investment advisor Gregory MacArthur.
Gateway Inc (NYSE: GTW) is selling products in China for the first time in a pilot program with Digital China Holdings Ltd, the LA Times reported.
According to The Nation, The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) is planning to ask its board of directors later this year for approval to invest in five petrochemical projects in Thailand.
Cementos Portland Valderribas, a unit of Fomento de Construcciones y Contractas is planning a bid for Texas Industries Inc (NYSE: TXI), the Expansion reports, citing people close to the situation.
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MOST NOTEWORTHY: NutriSystem, Under Armour, CME Group, Air France ADS and Kilroy Realty were today's noteworthy upgrades:.gif){kind=logo}
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