Analyst Upgrades

• Akamai (AKAM) to overweight from neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• Las Vegas Sands (LVS) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Aetna (AET) to Outperform from market perform at Leerink.
• Hot Topic (HOTT) to buy from neutral at Janney Capital.
• Colonial Properties (CLP) upgraded to Outperform from market perform at FBR Capital and to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• Altera (ALTR) to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• American Reprographics (ARC), CarMax (KMX) and American Campus (ACC) to outperform from neutral at RW Baird.
• Zebra Tech (ZBRA) to neutral from underweight at JPMorgan.
• IMAX (IMAX) to buy from hold at Canaccord.
• Basic Energy (BAS) to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• Mednax (MD) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• UTi Worldwide (UTIW) to buy from hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

Analyst Upgrades

• Xilinx (XLNX) to buy from hold at Auriga.
• Orion Energy (OESX) to buy from neutral at Roth Capital.
• Goodyear Tire (GT) to buy from fair value at CRT Capital.
• RadioShack (RSH) to neutral from underperform at Wedbush.
• Novo Nordisk (NVO) to buy from neutral at Goldman.

Financials have staged an impressive rally from extremely oversold levels," says Kelley Wright, editor of the top-rated IQ Trends, which focuses on high quality, blue chip, dividend-paying stocks. Here's his top long-term buys among banks.

"It is increasingly evident that the banking sector is dividing into two distinct camps; the have's and the have not's. The 'have's' are:

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) among the big cap area;
SunTrust (NYSE: STI) and BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT) in the larger regional banking sector;
Bank of Hawaii (NYSE: BOH) and Southwest Bancorp (NASDAQ: OKSB) in the smaller cap area.

"The impressive rally to date notwithstanding, it still remains to be seen whether another retracement will develop should crude oil, gold and other commodities reverse course.

"A strong rally in these sectors could send the market down again. While Mr. Market can do whatever he pleases, it is highly unusual for stocks to bottom in the summer.

"It would not be imprudent to see what September and October have to offer before anyone begins to talk seriously about the bottom. For investors with an appetite for the financials, however, we would suggest dusting off that old tried and true tactic of dollar cost averaging as a prudent means to establish positions."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest market commentary and favorite investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Although Doug Hughes, Bill Martin and Charles Mizrahi each take differing approaches to stock selection, their latest buys all share several elements. First, while operating in diverse markets, Hawaii, Boston and New York – all three are regional banks.

In addition, all three advisors see their banking bets as value-oriented positions with solid, long-term fundamentals. All three are also buyback and/or takeover plays.

Bill Martin, editor of FindProfit newsletter recommends Valley National Bancorp (NYSE: VLY), which he notes is based in the prime New York City metropolitan banking market.

He states, "VLY has seen its bottom line pressured, primarily due to the flat yield curve. However, there have been no credit issues at very conservatively run VLY, and we don't expect any to develop."

Looking forward, he says, we continue to believe that margins are 'as bad as they will get' for many banks, at least,he notes, for conservative banks without credit challenges such as Valley.

According to Martin, "This means that VLY's bottom-line results should bottom this year and start to improve in 2008."

Meanwhile, he speculatives, "We believe that VLY continues to be a takeout target, as the bank's footprint and under-leveraged balance sheet remains extremely attractive." Further, he states, "With outright ownership of more than 90 buildings in the NYC area, we believe its book value is materially understated."