MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Lazard and to Buy from Strong Buy at Broadpoint following its lowered Q3 guidance.
  
• Jefferies downgraded shares of Endo Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ENDP) to Hold from Buy after Impax Laboratories (NASDAQ: IPXL) filed a Paragraph IV challenge against Opana ER yesterday to reflect the potential for a generic version of Opana ER arriving as early as 2010 and the possibility of a similar threat against Lidoderm.
  
• Corporate Express (NYSE: CXP) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at ING, as they believe the new CEO's long-term targets are overly ambitious.
  
• JP Morgan downgraded Aventine Renewable (NYSE: AVR) and BioFuel Energy (NASDAQ: BIOF) to Neutral from Overweight, citing weaker fundamentals in ethanol pricing.

• JP Morgan downgraded Charlotte Russe (NASDAQ: CHIC) and The Wet Seal (NASDAQ: WTSLA) to Neutral from Overweight.
  
• Goldman downgraded Monolithic Power Systems (NASDAQ: MPWR) and Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS) to Neutral from Buy; Goldman removed National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM) from its Conviction Buy List.

Analyst downgrades: NTRI, ENDP, CXP, AVR and BIOF originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Oct 2007 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Citigroup initiated shares of VeraSun Energy (NYSE: VSE) and BioFuel Energy with Buy ratings, as the firm believes the ethanol industry is reaching an inflection point as profitability should be much improved in 2008.

• BioFuel (NASDAQ: BIOF) was also initiated with a Hold rating at AG Edwards on valuation and an Overweight rating at JP Morgan, who believes BioFuel has good growth prospects but trades at a discount relative to peers.

• Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Cowen, citing the company's rich valuation and mixed growth outlook.

• Cowen resumed coverage of Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ: TTWO) with an Outperform rating, as the firm believes TTWO is positioned for a strong 2H07 given the Grand Theft Auto IV and other titles...

• CDC Corporation (NASDAQ: CHINA) was initiated with a Buy rating and $12 target at Montgomery.

• Oppenheimer started shares of Chelsea Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CHTP) with a Buy rating and $12 target.

• Banc of America initiated shares of Charming Shoppes (NASDAQ: CHRS) with a Neutral rating and $11 target.

• Raymond James initiated shares of Geokinetics (AMEX: GOK) with a Market Perform rating.

• King Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: KG) was initiated at Goldman Sachs with a Neutral rating and $19 target.

Analyst initiations 7-25-07: BIOF, ERTS and TTWO originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 Jul 2007 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Day Undetermined:
  • The Blackstone Group (BX), a 133.3M-share IPO. Morgan Stanley and Citigroup are the lead managers. Filing range: $29.00-$31.00.
• Tuesday
  • Biofuel Energy (BIOF), a 9.5M-share IPO for this ethanol company. JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, and AG Edwards are the lead managers. Filing range: $16.00-$18.00.
• Wednesday
  • Bway (BWY), an 11.765M-share IPO for this container company. Goldman Sachs and the Bank of America are the lead managers. Filing range: $16.00-$18.00.
  • GeoVera Insurance (GEOV), a 5.99M-share IPO for this residential insurance company. JP Morgan Chase and Merrill Lynch are the lead managers.
• Thursday
  • Aegerion Pharmaceuticals (AEGR), a 5M-share IPO for this cardiovascular medicines company. Lehman Brothers is the lead manager. Filing range: $12.00-$14.00.

Continue reading IPO & secondary weekly preview: Blackstone Group, Hertz, Omniture

IPO & secondary weekly preview: Blackstone Group, Hertz, Omniture originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Jun 2007 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.