It's been said that if the U.S. state of Georgia were an independent nation, it would have the 18th largest economy in world. The "Empire State of the South" ranked tenth in U.S. in per capita personal income in 2005, and has one of the fastest growing populations in the U.S. -- about a million additional people between 2000 and 2005. Its diverse industrial output ranges from peaches and peanuts, to textiles, food processing, and aircraft manufacturing, to publishing and tourism. Georgia is home to such corporate giants as Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO); Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL); Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD); UPS (NYSE: UPS); Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NYSE: NWL), and Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX).

It's also home to Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI) and Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN), both of which represented Georgia on the Forbes 2007 list of 100 best mid cap stocks. I examine two other Peach State companies -- RPC Inc. (NYSE: RES) and Radiant Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: RADS) -- in a separate Investing in Georgia post.

You will soon be able to stop everyone from using your good credit name, even if you have not yet had the misfortune of dealing with the mess created by a stolen identity. That's because by November 1 all three credit bureaus will allow you to "freeze" your credit report, which means no one can access your report until you give them permission.

It's not only a good idea to prevent identity theft, it's also a way to make you think before opening up a new credit account. If you're having trouble getting control of your impulses and want to get them under control, think seriously about freezing your credit accounts.

Before the change, only people who could prove they were an actual victim of identity theft were able to freeze their credit account. Seniors in certain states, where it was mandated by state law, could also freeze their accounts.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Campbell Soup Co (CPB), Yum! Brands (YUM), NYSE Euronext (NYX), Forest Laboratories (FRX) and International Speedway Corp (ISCA) were some of today's noteworthy upgrades:

• JP Morgan upgraded shares of Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB) to Overweight from Neutral as they believe the company's entrance into Russia and China is not priced into shares. JP Morgan also added CPB to their Analyst Focus List.

• UBS upgraded shares of Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) to Buy from Neutral based on higher estimates for international, potential debt leverage, and a potential minority spin-off of its China business.

• Lehman upgraded NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) to Overweight from Equal Weight on valuation following the recent weakness. They believe Q2 earnings and a potential S&P 500 Index addition could be a catalyst for gains.

• UBS upgraded Forest Labs (NYSE: FRX) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and their belief that the company will prevail in a patent dispute over Lexapro with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (TEVA).

• AG Edwards upgraded International Speedway (NASDAQ: ISCA) to Hold from Sell on valuation...

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Hambrecht upgraded Micron Technology (NYSE: MU) to Buy from Hold.

• JMP Securities raised shares of Equifax (NYSE: EFX) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• Ferris Baker Watts upgraded Unica Corp (NASDAQ: UNCA) to Neutral from Sell.

• Calyon upgraded Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) to Neutral from Sell.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Most lifestyles in America are significantly impacted by credit ratings. That makes the companies determining our scores pretty powerful outfits. One of the biggest credit reporters in the country is headquartered in Atlanta.

Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) collects, organizes, and manages credit, financial, public record, demographic and marketing information regarding individuals and businesses. It then markets the information to businesses and government agencies, which use it to make informed decisions about extending credit, mitigating fraud, managing portfolio risk and developing marketing strategies. The firm also enables consumers to manage and protect their financial affairs, through a portfolio of products that it sells via the Internet. Equifax operates in North America, South America and Europe.

The company pleased investors last week, when it issued upside guidance for Q2 EPS (55-57 cents, vs. 54 cent Street consensus) and FY07 EPS ($2.25-$2.33, vs. $2.19 consensus). Management said it upgraded previous guidance, because acquisition of payroll services provider Talx Corporation put Equifax "on a clear path to deliver the growth and financial performance" outlined in a strategic plan presented last year. The news popped the shares out of a late May "cup" into the early June "handle" of a Cup & Handle formation. The price is now showing signs of completing the pattern with a bullish rise from the right-hand side of the "handle."

Brokers recommend the issue with three "strong buys," one "buy" and nine "holds." The EFX P/E ratio (19.81), Price to Cash Flow ratio (14.90), Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (18.13), EPS Growth rate (20.83%), Operating Margin (28.14%), Net Profit Margin (17.79%), Return on Assets (15.12%), Return on Investment (19.81%) and Return on Equity (31.44%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages.

Institutional investors hold about 84% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 500 Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $30.15 and $44.36. A stop-loss of $38.65 looks good here. Note that the firm recently announced it will buy back $250 million of its stock, under a plan that becomes effective June 25. Note also that it is expected to report Q2 results in late July.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.

The dawn of the globalization era has witnessed dozens of new sectors of growth, due to the robust growth in emerging market economies in China, India, Eastern Europe and Russia, among other locales.

And one sector that is almost certain to benefit from this growth -- due to the accompanying expansion of the middle class -- is credit reporting/credit information, which is why investors who can tolerate moderate risk may want to consider investing in Equifax (NYSE: EFX).

(Note: In a future article on The Fly and on bloggingstocks.com, we'll examine in more detail the expanding universe of credit score and credit report functions.)

Equifax, which was up 27 cents to $41.84 in Monday afternoon trading, is one of the main providers of consumer and commercial credit information, the others being TransUnion and Experian. The three form a "credit-worthy troica" that calculates, arguably, the most important score/number for each U.S. citizen, after his/her Social Security number and benefit tabulation.

Credit scores from the three, or the "tri-merged" score, have long been used in mortgage decisions to help determine a candidate's credit worthiness and payment reliability, but in recent years employers have increasingly used them to evaluate a candidate's employment history, and other information that may help fill-out the profile of a job applicant. More recently, a micro market has developed for the three credit agencies in identity theft protection.

When it comes to predictive data analysis and reporting, Fair Isaac (NYSE:FIC) is the stand out leader in that field. Fair Isaac offers statistics-based predictive tools for the consumer credit industry. You know their talents well. Predictive statistical analysis is the type of methodology used to collar you with your credit score. Fair Issac credit score analysis algorithms are utilized by the three big name credit reporting bureaus, Experian, Trans Union and Equifax. Basic FICO scoring systems have been in use since 1970. The current Fair Isaac credit scoring system has been in use since 1981. In addition to credit risk analysis, Fair Isaac also markets solutions for insurance applicant risk assessment, other financial risk predictors and data management solutions as well.

What might make Fair Isaac a good investment? Well, one thing is for sure. If the company is going to run into trouble they should be the first ones to know. I'll just give you some historical background on the company to enlighten you but I'll have to stop there because frankly when it comes to analyzing analytical analysis, I'd rather be sorting laundry or something exciting like that.