MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Prudential upgraded shares of ConAgra Foods Inc (NYSE: CAG) to Neutral from Underweight with a $26 target on valuation.
• Pacific Crest upgraded shares of Dell Inc (NASDAQ: DELL) to Outperform from Sector Perform as the firm believes new management, new products and supply chain cost realignments could boost operating margins.
• Ryland Group, Inc (NYSE: RYL) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.
• Unterberg upgraded shares of Volterra Semiconductor (NASDAQ: VLTR) to Market Perform from Underperform on valuation.

• Friedman Billings upgraded Peabody Energy Corp (NYSE: BTU) to Outperform from Market Perform based on lack of CAPP exposure, growth profile, rising international demand and certain benefits from the scrubber trend.
• JP Morgan upgraded shares of Cincinnati Bell Inc (NYSE: CBB) to Overweight from Neutral, as the firm believes higher capex is reflected in the valuation and FCF should recover in 2008.
• Sandler upgraded First Charter Corp (NASDAQ: FCTR) to Buy from Hold based on valuation.
• Brean Murray has increased confidence in the success of Isle of Capri Casinos' (NASDAQ: ISLE) Isle casino, soon to open at Pompapno Park, and the considerable option value that should be embedded in shares related to a Florida gaming bill which would loosen restrictions on gaming at pari-mutual facilities. The firm upgraded shares to Buy from Hold on the news.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of Pogo Producing Co (NYSE: PPP) to Hold from Sell to reflect the likelihood of corporate action over the near term, most likely the sale of the company in whole or in parts.
• Merill Lynch upgraded Janus Capital Group Inc (NYSE: JNS) and Calamos Asset Management, Inc (NASDAQ: CLMS) to Buy from Neutral.

Analyst upgrades 4-09-07: ConAgra Foods, Dell and Ryland Group upgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 09 Apr 2007 10:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Bear Stearns downgraded MedImmune Inc (NASDAQ: MEDI) to Peer Perform from Outperform based on limited upside over the next 6-12 months.

• Take-Two Interactive Software (Nasdaq: TTWO) was cut by Kaufman to Sell from Hold with a $17 target. Kaufman believes Take-Two is overvalued based on fundamentals.

• Tractor Supply (NASDAQ: TSCO) was downgraded by Matrix to Sell from Hold. The firm expects high livestock feed and fertilizer prices to cut demand for Tractor Supply's target customer base.

• Martin Midstream Partners LP (NASDAQ: MMLP) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform based on valuation.

• Friedman Billings cut Opteum Inc (NYSE: OPX) to Underperform from Market Perform citing the mounting losses in sub-prime mortgage loans and notes that servicing rights are also under pressure.

• JP Morgan downgraded OMI Corp (NYSE: OMM) to Neutral from Overweight.

• Kaufman downgraded First Charter Corp (NASDAQ: FCTR) to Market Perform from Outperform, citing the macro environment for the downgrade.

• CIBC downgraded Saifun Semiconductors Ltd (NASDAQ: SFUN) to Sector Performer from Outperform after checks in Asia indicated that Hynix is no longer considering NROM as they believe SFUN's licensing momentum is diminishing.

Analyst downgrades 3-20-07: Medimmune Inc & Take-Two Interactive Software downgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 Mar 2007 11:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.