Analyst upgrades:

• Janney Montgomery upgraded Aqua America (NYSE: WTR) to Buy from Neutral on valuation, viewing the recent weakness as a buying opportunity. The firm has a $19 target on the stock.
• UBS upgraded Gildan Activewear (NYSE: GIL) to Buy from Neutral due to customer Broder's improved liquidity and the improved outlook for margins.
• RBC Capital upgraded State Street (NYSE: STT) to Top Pick from Outperform and raised its target to $55 from $40. The analyst said the $2B capital raise addresses TCE ratio concerns and large unrealized losses in the investment portfolio.
• Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
• Advance Auto Parts (NYSE: AAP) was upgraded to Buy from Underperform at Banc of America/Merrill.
• M&T Bank (NYSE: MTB) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Bernstein.

United Therapeutics (NASDAQ: UTHR - option chain) stock is falling today after the company announced it expects a probable delay in receiving FDA approval for Tyvaso, its inhaled drug to treat pulmonary hypertension. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on UTHR.

This morning, UTHR opened at $59.90. So far today the stock has hit a low of $59.35 and a high of $62.34. As of 11:40, UTHR is trading at $61.08, down $5.20 (-7.9%). The chart for UTHR looks bearish.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) closed at $47.39 Friday. WTI crude oil futures are recently down 2.16% to $55.81 according to Bloomberg. Berkshire Hathaway reported an 84 million stake in COP. COP December option implied volatility is at 80, January is at 75; is above its 26-week average of 43 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Eaton (NYSE: ETN) closed at $41.15 Friday. Deutsche Bank has a Hold rating on ETN. Berkshire Hathaway reported a 2.9 million stake in ETN. ETN December option implied volatility of 76 is above its 26-week average of 46 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

United Therapeutics (NYSE: UTHR) is recently down $25.90 to $64.62 in pre-open trading. UTHR ph.3 FREEDOM-C trial for oral treprostinil failed to its meet endpoint. UTHR November 90 straddle went out at $21.10, December 90 straddle is priced at $27.40 according to Track Data, suggesting large price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Today's more noteworthy upgrades include Verizon Communications Inc (VZ), Priceline.com Inc (PCLN) Intel Corp (INTC), NYSE Euronext (NYX) and Top Tankers Inc (TOPT):

• Citigroup upgraded Verizon Commuications (NYSE: VZ) to Buy from Sell and raised their target to $48 from $33 as the firm believes earnings-per-share growth will override cap ex concern.

• Citigroup also upgraded shares of Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) to Buy from Hold on valuation as the firm believes the company's growth prospects are underestimated in the stock following the recent sell-off.

• Intel Corp (NASDAQ: INTC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Merrill Lynch citing the company's robust product road map and its ability to compete against Advanced Micro Devices (AMD).

• JP Morgan upgraded NYXE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) to Neutral from Underweight and believes the risks that attributed NYX's downgrade in February have played out and sees limited downside at these levels.

• Cantor upgraded Top Tankers (NASDAQ: TOPT) to Hold from Sell following better-than-expected Q1 results...

OTHER UPGRADES:

• UBS upgraded shares of CACI International Inc (NYSE: CAI) to Buy from Neutral.

• Leerink Swann raised United Therapeutics Corp (NASDAQ: UTHR) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• Calyon upgraded Nabors Industries Ltd (NYSE: NBR) to Add from Neutral.

• Murphy Oil Corp (NYSE: MUR) was raised to Hold from Sell at Benchmark.

• Banc of America upgraded shares of Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc (NYSE: SKT) to Buy from Neutral.

• Baird upgraded Brady Corp (NYSE: BRC) to Outperform from Neutral.

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

MOST NOTEWORTHY: American Home Mortgage Investment Corp (AHM), MasterCard Inc (MA) and the selective railroad companies were today's more notable initiations:

• JMP Securities started American Home Mortgage (NYSE: AHM) with a Market Perform frating citing the challenging mortgage market.

• UBS started MasterCard (NYSE: MA) with a Buy and doesn't believe margin upside is fully reflected in the stock's valuation.

• Morgan Stanley initiated five railroad companies: Union Pacific Corp (NYSE: UNP) and Norfolk Southern Corp (NYSE: NSC) with Overweight ratings and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp (NYSE: BNI), Canadian Natural Resource Ltd (NYSE: CNQ) and CSX Corp (NYSE: CSX) with Equal Weight ratings.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Ceradyne, Inc (NASDAQ: CRDN) was initiated with a Neutral rating at First Albany.

• United Therapeutics Corp (NASDAQ: UTHR) was started with a Buy rating and $81 target at Citigroup.

• Goldman Sachs initiated shares of Aruba Networks, Inc (NASDAQ: ARUN) with a Neutral rating and $16.50 target.

• Saks Inc (NYSE: SKS) was started at Bear Stearns with a Peer Perform rating.

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

The Volatility Index for S&P 500 Options (VIX) is down 0.52 to 14.44.

Louisiana Pacific (NYSE: LPX) call volume Heavy, volatility Higher on renewed Chatter. LPX is recently up .28 to $20.77. LPX has been frequently mentioned as possibly returning cash to shareholders or as a candidate for private equity LBO bid. LPX had 2006 total revenue of $2.2 billion. LPX has a market cap of $2.1 billion with long term debt of $644 million. LPX call option volume of 6,927 contracts compares to put volume of 164 contracts. LPX April option implied volatility of 32 is above its 26-week average of 29 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

Houston Wire & Cable (NASDAQ: HWCC) volatility Flat; call volume heavy on secondary offering. HWCC offers specialty wire & cable. HWCC is recently up .78 to $27.46. HWCC announced a secondary offering of 5.5 million shares to 6.5 million shares. The price of the offering was set at $25. HWCC has a market cap of $569 million with long term debt of $12 million. HWCC reported 2006 total revenue of $323 million. HWCC call option volume of 2,275 contracts compares to put volume of 23 contracts. HWCC May option implied volatility of 47 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price risks.

Option volume leaders today are: Beazer Homes (NYSE: BZH), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) and United Therapeutics (NASDAQ: UTHR).

The Daily Option Update is provided by Stock Options Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: WebMD Health Corp (WBMD) was today's only noteworthy initiation:

• William Blair started the online health information portal, WebMD Health Corp (NASDAQ: WBMD) with an Outperform rating. The firm believes WebMD is positioned to benefit from various trends in the industry, including the increasing use of the Internet for information and patients' assuming more responsibility for their health care decisions.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Pacific Growth initiated United Therapeutics Corp (NASDAQ: UTHR) with a Neutral rating. The firm sees potential revenue risk from patient switching and reduced new patient starts in response to reports about higher incidence of serious Gram negative infections resulting in a Dear Doctor letter being sent to all IV-Remodulin prescribers in September 2006.

• Soleil Securities started Genuine Parts Co (NYSE: GPC) with a Buy rating and $65 target, noting that Genuine has the highest yield in the auto sector.

• Nollenberger doesn't see a catalyst for double-digit growth in Lam Research Corp (NASDAQ: LRCX) for the next 12-18 months and initiated the company with a Neutral rating and $40 target.

• ConAgra Foods Inc (NYSE: CAG) was initiated with a Hold rating at AG Edwards on valuation.

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