MOST NOTEWORTHY: Kohlberg Capital, ClickSoftware and Liberty Property Trust were today's noteworthy initiations:
JMP Securities started shares of Kohlberg Capital (NASDAQ: KCAP) with an Outperform rating and $14 target. The firm believes Kohlberg Capital's alliance with Kohlberg and Company allows Kohlberg Capital to take advantage of considerable expertise. JMP Securities believes Kohlberg Capital has an attractive risk/reward ratio.
Roth Capital initiated ClickSoftware (NASDAQ: CKSW) with a Hold rating and $3.60 target and expects EPS pressure from the depreciating dollar near-term.
Liberty Property Trust (NYSE: LRY) was initiated with a Hold rating at Stifel, citing lack of internal earnings divers and fair valuation.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
Oppenheimer initiated VisionChina Media (NASDAQ: VISN) with a Perform rating and $25 target.
Merrill assumed MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) with a Neutral rating.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: The Department store sector, SanDisk and CNET Networks were today's noteworthy downgrades:
Goldman downgraded the department store sector to Neutral from Attractive after raising its 2008 oil forecast to $149 from $115, as it believes higher gas prices will impact consumer discretionary spend and sentiment. Goldman downgraded JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) and Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) to Neutral and also removed Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) from its Conviction Buy List.
JMP Securities downgraded SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) to Underperform from Market Perform based on increased competition in NAND, a potential decline in royalty income, valuation, and lack of catalysts from flash-based solid state drives.
CNET Networks (NASDAQ: CNET) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America following the tender offer from CBS (NYSE: CBS).
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Fiserv, Arbitron and Anadarko Petroleum were today's noteworthy upgrades:
JMP Securities upgraded Fiserv (NASDAQ: FISV) to Outperform from Market Perform citing a reversal of the Bank of America in-house risk, potential re-branding initiatives, and relative pricing stability.
Bear upgraded Arbitron (NYSE: ARB) to Outperform from Peer Perform citing PPM earnings growth potential, strong industry position, defensive nature of shares, and it views the company as an acquisition target.
Lehman raised Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) to Overweight from Equal Weight citing relative valuation and strong U.S. gas exposure.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Goldman added Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) to its Conviction Buy List.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: MedicNova, Transocean and Lennox were today's noteworthy initiations:
Rodman & Renshaw is positive on MedicNova's (NASDAQ:MNOV) two primary products in development: MN-221, for the treatment of severe asthma and MN-166, an oral treatment for multiple sclerosis. The firm is also positive on MNOV's valuation; shares were initiated with an Outperform rating and $9 target.
Transocean (NYSE:RIG) is UBS's Top Pick as they believe it is the primary beneficiary of rising deepwater dayrates. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating and $201 target.
Suntrust initiated Lennox (NYSE:LII) with a Neutral rating and cites near-term visibility.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
Dean Foods (NYSE:DF) was initiated with an Outperform rating and $29 target.
Goldman started Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH) with a Neutral rating and $92 target.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: J. Sainsbury, Orthofix and Salary.com were today's noteworthy downgrades:
Merrill Lynch downgraded J. Sainsbury (Other OTC:JSAIY) to Sell from Neutral following the company's quarterly results; Deutsche Bank downgraded shares to Sell from Hold as they believe the company's results show it has lost momentum.
ThinkPanmure downgraded Orthofix (NASDAQ:OFIX) to Source of Funds from Accumulate citing the loss of Osteocel, which will impact growth.
Wachovia cut Salary.com (NASDAQ:SLRY) to Market Perform from Outperform citing concerns that FY09 will be a challenging given significant increases in investment for sales and marketing.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Syneron Medical, Cellcom Israel, GATX Corp and TNS, Inc were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Merriman upgraded shares of Syneron Medical (NASDAQ:ELOS) to Buy from Neutral following the Q1 results to reflect the introduction of LipoLite and the company's global distribution channel. They believe shares can trade towards the $22-$26 level.
Jefferies upgraded Cellcom Israel (NYSE:CEL) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q1 results to reflect its improved EBITDA outlook.
Morgan Keegan upgraded GATX (NYSE:GMT) to Outperform from Market Perform as they believe the company has increased opportunities to deploy capital given the current state of the market for railcars, which should result in share outperformance.
Suntrust raised TNS, Inc (NYSE:TNS) to Buy from Neutral citing improved execution and the global shift towards electronic transactions.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Chevron (NYSE:CVX) was raised at UBS to Buy from Neutral.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Staples, Evergreen Solar and Genzyme were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Jefferies upgraded shares of Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS) to Buy from Hold following the company's raised bid for Corporate Express based on the increased chance the deal gets deal done and SPLS achieves meaningful EPS accretion.
Jefferies also raised Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ: ESLR) to Buy from Hold on valuation, as they believe concerns regarding capital needs are now priced into the stock and that the company continues to take risk out of its growth story through execution.
Bernstein upgraded Genzyme (NASDAQ: GENZ) to Outperform from Market Perform citing increased confidence in GENZ's product portfolio, geographic and therapeutic diversification, improved outlook, and valuation.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
BearingPoint (NYSE: BE) was upgraded at Goldman to Neutral from Sell.
Lehman upgraded Nexen (NYSE: NXY) to Overweight from Equal Weight.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Anadigics, Crystal River Capital and Canadian Solar were today's noteworthy downgrades:
Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Anadigics (NASDAQ: ANAD) to Perform from Outperform on valuation following the recent run-up.
Wachovia downgraded Crystal River Capital (NYSE: CRZ) to Market Perform from Outperform citing the uncertain near-term strategic outlook.
Broadpoint downgraded shares of Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) to Buy from Strong Buy on valuation following yesterday's rally but raised their target to $45 from $29.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Invesco, Kimberly Clark and Crawford & Company were today's noteworthy initiations:
Jefferies finds Invesco (NYSE: IVZ) compelling given the company's focus on expense control, strong cash flow characteristics, and attractive valuation. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating and $33 target.
Caris started Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB) with a Below Average rating and $58 target. The firm believes consensus estimates may be too high given the high cost of commodities.
Suntrust started Crawford & Company (NYSE: CRDB) with a Buy rating and $8 target, and believes the company is at the "front end" of a turnaround in operations.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
Bernstein initiated Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR) with an Outperform rating and $100 target.
BMO Capital assumed Range Resources (NYSE: RRC) with an Outperform rating and $85 target.
Intrepid Potash (NYSE: IPI) was started with a Sell rating and $40 target at Soleil.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: IberiaBank, Dynamic Materials and Barr Pharmaceuticals were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of IberiaBank (NASDAQ: IBKC) to Market Perform from Underperform after the company announced that Pulaski has assumed the insured deposits of ANB Financial of Bentonville, Arkansas.
KeyBanc upgraded Dynamic Materials (NASDAQ: BOOM) to Buy from Hold citing stability in base business, valuation, and the added benefit associated with a European competitor being acquired.
Cowen raised Barr Pharma (NYSE: BRL) to Outperform from Neutral citing the recent pullback.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Goldman added McGraw-Hill (NASDAQ: MHP) to its Conviction Buy List.
RBC Capital raised RadioShack (NYSE: RSH) to Sector Perform from Underperform.
Sirius Satellite (NASDAQ: SIRI) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Neutral from Sell.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: SunPower, Evergreen Solar and Abbott Lab were today's noteworthy initiations:
Citigroup believes SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR) is faced with high cell production costs, its silicon cost and installation cost advantages are increasingly commoditized and finds the risk/reward even at current levels. Shares were initiated with a Hold rating and $105 target.
Citigroup believes Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ: ESLR) faces significant financing requirements over the next few years, making it difficult to see a sustained period of EPS growth beyond the $1 range. The firm sees downside to $5/share. Shares were assumed with a Sell rating and $8 target.
UBS started Abbott Lab (NYSE: ABT) with a Buy rating and $61 target. The firm is positive on Humira potential growth and expects Xience to drive vascular operating margins to positive.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Lincoln Educational, Sonus Networks and Novartis were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Lehman upgraded Lincoln Educational (NASDAQ: LINC) to Overweight from Equal Weight based on improving student enrollment growth and valuation.
Merriman upgraded Sonus Networks (NASDAQ: SONS) to Buy from Neutral on the company's strong AT&T (NYSE: T) outlook and near-term upside potential from Japan. They believe shares can trade towards the $5-$6 range.
Bernstein raised Novartis (NYSE: NVS) to Outperform from Market Perform as they believe the company's diversification position it well to withstand future generic expiries.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Goldman Sachs added Burger King (NYSE: BKC) to its Conviction Buy List.
Credit Suisse upgraded Imperial Tobacco (NYSE: ITY) to Outperform from Neutral.
After hitting a one-year high of $747.24 in November, the stock hit a one-year low of $412.11 in March. GOOG opened this morning at $586.20. So far today the stock has hit a low of $582.05 and a high of $589.30. As of 12:20, GOOG is trading at $585.23, up 6.23 (1.1%). The chart for GOOG looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.
For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a May bull-put credit spread below the $540 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 5.3% return in just one week as long as GOOG is above $540 at May expiration next Friday. Google would have to fall by more than 7% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.
GOOG hasn't been below $540 since rising sharply in April and has shown support around $579 recently. This trade could be risky if the economy continues to weaken and the stock reverses course, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by the support the stock might find around $540, where it found some support after its initial climb after its last earnings release.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Learning Tree, Shengdatech and Cepheid were today's noteworthy initiations:
B. Riley initiated Learning Tree (NASDAQ:LTRE) with a Buy rating and $24 target. The firm believes investors have an opportunity to invest in a compelling revenue growth/margin expansion story at reasonable multiples with the stock off recent highs.
Merriman started Shengda Tech (NASDAQ:SDTH) with a Buy rating and points to the company's growing nano-particle business and the vast market expansion opportunities associated with this business.
Stephens believes Cepheid (NASDAQ:CPHD) possesses a best-in-class platform for molecular diagnostic testing with a virtual monopoly in the molecular point of care market; shares were assumed with an Overweight rating and $32 target.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
Visa (NYSE:V) was started at Morgan Keegan with a Market Perform rating.
Morgan Stanley initiated Dr. Pepper Snapple (N YSE:DPS) with an Equal Weight rating and $30 target.
Goldman initiated Kraft Foods (NYSE:KFT) with a Neutral rating.
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MOST NOTEWORTHY: Kohlberg Capital, ClickSoftware and Liberty Property Trust were today's noteworthy initiations:
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