Yahoo! (YHOO) received an analyst upgrade from JMP Securities Monday. The thesis is that online advertising is improving, so now may be the time to get in on the possible capital appreciation of the business. The stock closed yesterday at $16.52 per share -- a gain of 2.8%. Volume was active.

The upgrade also comes with a price target of $21. Yahoo!, like many stocks, has bounced off its 52-week low quite strongly. Over the 12-month period, the company has risen by better than 20%. From one angle, I like the idea of this trade. Technically, the shares might be ready to move.

Yahoo!'s (NASDAQ: YHOO) second-quarter earnings release, which was issued after the bell on Tuesday, didn't go over so well. Sales declined 13%. Adjusted earnings were 16 cents per share. That means that there was zero per-share profit growth on the bottom line. To add insult to injury, adjusted operating cash flow declined 10%.

In terms of expectations, Reuters is reporting a beat of two pennies based on Yahoo!'s reported income of 10 cents per share. No one really cared. The stock sold off in yesterday's after-hours session, losing over 3% of its value. This was on top of losing 1.5% during the regular trading session. A lot of shares were traded yesterday, too.

Last week it was announced that the long-anticipated separation of AOL from Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) is set to happen before the end of the year -- then what?

If all goes well, AOL will set its own course sustaining what's left of its internet prominence, after falling from what was once internet dominance before its merger with TWX, and the continuous contraction of its dial-up subscriptions.

AOL still attracts more than 100 million Internet users to its online content portal, which includes BloggingStocks, so the adventure will continue. And, an AD-venture it is sure to be.

The same is true for Time Warner, the world's largest media conglomerate with operations spanning film, television, cable TV, and publishing. It will have an AD-venture of its own.