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.
  
• Morgan Stanley started BJ's Wholesale (NYSE: BJ) and Costco (NASDAQ: COST) with Equal Weight ratings.

The 2008 Olympics will prove to be a profitable endeavor for lots of companies. We've spoken previously about ClickSoftware (NASDAQ: CKSW), a niche software player with workforce management solutions to manage service networks. (To learn more about the firm, read this article.)

So, how do you effectively manage a temporary but highly critical workforce for an extremely large, extremely high-profile public event?

One answer is by striking a deal with CKSW, which is exactly what's happened. ClickSoftware announced today that the firm has landed a deal via its Chinese reseller to "manage the field activities of hundreds of telecommunication technicians during the 2008 Olympic Summer Games in China."

After investors were disappointed with last quarter's earnings, this may be the win ClickSoftware's been looking for on the way to gold.

Zack Miller is the Managing Editor of IsraelNewsletter.com and a former equity analyst for a leading multinational hedge fund. Author does not own CKSW.

With just ten more shopping days until Christmas, it's time for a stocking stuffer wish list. With the recent market selloff, bargains are abound. If you think the 15% off sales in your favorite department store are interesting, here are stocks that are REALLY on sale, and would make the perfect stocking stuffer.

For American Express (NYSE: AXP), the shopping season is going better than all the pessimists thought it would and the credit card company should stand to gain. In addition, since the market tends to be a leading economic indicator that looks out six months into the future, I would expect a strong pickup in growth in the second half of '08, which should also help earnings. With this stock trading down to levels not seen in 15 months, the stock is looking attractive for a turnaround.

ClickSoftware (NASDAQ: CKSW) is the leading provider of mobile workforce management and service optimization solutions. With mobile applications just starting to come online into the market, this company could be a real winner. This stock isn't for the weak of heart, having dropped 43% from the 52 week-high. That being said, business is shaping up to be really strong for '08.

ClickSoftware Technologies (NASDAQ: CKSW) a provider of mobile workforce management and service optimization solutions, is set to report earnings tomorrow morning before the market opens. Investors expect a strong quarter as ClickSoftware has been showing strong growth. The company raised guidance for annual revenue growth of about 26.5% to 29.5%, compared to the 20% growth projection given at the beginning of the year.

Analyst Matthew Weiss of Maxim Group initiated coverage of ClickSoftware in the summer, with a "buy" rating and an $8 price target. Weiss cited market trends for his optimism, explaining that "Gartner predicts that the market for field service management software/services will grow at an 18% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) through 2009. We expect CKSW to grow in excess of the market and model 32% and 25% year-over-year top-line growth in 2007 and 2008, respectively."

With the stock trading around $6.15, this presents an intriguing investment for those looking for micro-cap. With a market-cap of $170 million and a small float, any upside earnings surprise will send the stock soaring. Estimates range from flat to $0.03 EPS. As the company already guided numbers higher for the rest of 2007, it will be interesting to hear management give us a peak into what's in store for Q1 '08.

Disclosure: Author holds a position in CKSW as of 10/30/07.

Aaron Katsman is the lead Portfolio Manager and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. and Senior Editor of IsraelNewsletter.com.

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