One of the greatest investors of the 20th Century, Sir John Templeton, died today in the Bahamas at age 95. If you've invested with a contrarian style or in emerging markets, you probably owe some thanks to what he probably would've called "progress" in those fields.

In the investing world Templeton was known for the work he did on the Templeton Growth Fund, where he was one of the few investors to beat the S&P over the long haul. "If you want to have a better performance than the crowd, you must do things differently from the crowd," he once said.

Templeton did that by exploring the then-completely exotic world of emerging markets. "The other boys at Yale came from wealthy families, and none of them were investing outside the United States, and I thought, 'That is very egotistical. Why be so shortsighted or near-sighted as to focus only on America? Shouldn't you be more open-minded?'"

He also looked for beaten down and neglected companies. He famously bought $100 worth of 104 companies trading at less than $1 in 1937 and quadrupled his money in four years.

In the rest of the world he was known for financing research into what he called spiritual "progress." He felt spirituality and religion were neglected. To change that, he started offering the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion in 1972, which always makes sure it gives out more money than the Nobel Committee.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: RadioShack (RSH), Weyerhauser (WY), Goodyear Tire (GT), Hot Topic (HOTT) and Unilever (UL, UN) were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Citigroup downgraded RadioShack (NYSE: RSH) to Sell from Hold on valuation as they believe shares have priced in a more aggressive top-line recovery than the company can deliver over the next 12 months and that margin improvement is likely to slow.

• Merrill downgraded Weyerhauser (NYSE: WY) to Neutral from Buy based on the tighter credit environment and the impact on a potential containerboard divestiture or merger.

• Matrix downgraded shares of Goodyear Tire (NYSE: GT) to Sell from Hold to reflect rising oil prices and negative fundamental trends.

• AG Edwards downgraded Hot Topic (NASDAQ: HOTT) to Sell from Hold to reflect negative performance momentum and a lack of back-to-school prospects.

• Credit Suisse downgraded Unilever (NYSE: UN, UL) to Underperform from Neutral as their analysis suggests the company continues to lose market share...

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Baird cut Franklin Electric (NASDAQ: FELE) to Underperform from Neutral.

• Bear Stearns downgraded Kyphon (NASDAQ: KYPH) to Peer Perform from Outperform.

• Jarden (NYSE: JAH) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Goldman.

• Citigroup downgraded PetroChina (NYSE: PTR) to Hold from Buy.

• Alacatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman.

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

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Dreamworks Animation (NYSE: DWA), BlackRock (BLK), Mariner Energy (ME) and Franklin Resources (BEN) and RightNow Technologies (RNOW) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Stifel expects Dreamworks Animation's (NYSE: DWA) fundamental outlook for film to improve given a more accommodating home entertainment market, while next-gen DVD format adoption and the introduction of 3D exhibition in theaters creates incremental opportunities for film studios. The firm started shares off with a Buy rating.
  
• Wachovia believes BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) is one of the best-positioned managers in both product and geographic perspectives and initiated shares with an Outperform rating.
  
• BMO Capital believes Mariner Energy (NYSE: ME) has a number of catalysts that could push shares higher, but feels current trading levels are not attractive. BMO started shares with a Market Perform rating.
  
• William Blair views Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) as a premier global firm with an advantage in many attractive international markets and started shares with an Outperform rating.
  
• Cantor believes RightNow Tech's (NASDAQ: RNOW) transition creates significant execution risk, initiated shares with a Hold rating...

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• China Sunergy (NASDAQ: CSUN) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Cowen.
  
• Banc Of America initiated shares of The Stanley Works (NYSE: SWK) with a Neutral rating.
  
• Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY) was started with a Buy rating and Credit Suisse.
  
• Deutsche Bank initiated Cree (NASDAQ: CREE) with a Hold rating.

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

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Genesit Energy LP (GEL), EnerNoc (ENOC) and Comcast (CMCSA) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Genesis Energy (AMEX: GEL) was initiated with a Buy rating and $40 target at Stanford, as the firm believes the company's affiliation with Denbury Resources and pending acquisition of petroleum products, terminals, and transportation businesses from the Davison family will drive rapid growth.

• EnerNoc Inc (NASDAQ: ENOC) was initiated with a Hold rating and $42 target at Jefferies, due to valuation. EnerNoc was also initiated at Morgan Stanley with an Equal Weight rating and $40 target.

• Stifel expects Comcast (OTC: CMCSA) to benefit from higher penetration levels of DVR and HDTV set-top boxes over the next several years and initiated shares with a Buy rating and $34 target.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Select asset managers were initiated at Credit Suisse:

• AllianceBernstein (NYSE: AB), Affiliated Managers (NYSE: AMG), Fortress Investment (NYSE: FIG), Invesco (NYSE: IVZ), Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) and T Rowe Price (NASDAQ: TROW) were initiated with Outperform ratings.

• Blackrock (NYSE: BLK), Calamos Asset Mgmt (NADAQ: CLMS), Eaton Vance Corp (NYSE: EV), Federated Investors (NYSE: FII), Janus Capital (NYSE: JNS), Legg Mason Inc (NYSE: LM) and Waddell & Reed (NYSE: WDR) were initiated with Neutral ratings.

• Deutsche Bank initiated Ryland Group (NYSE: RYL) with a Buy rating and $52 target, as well as Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) and Meritage Homes Corp (NYSE: MTH) with Hold ratings and a $23 target and $29 target, respectively.

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

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Catchy new Dell Inc (NASDAQ: DELL) computers have launched today, reported the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
  
• Tyson Foods Inc (NYSE: TSN) said last week that it would produce all of its retail chickens without antibiotics, and that could be good for profitability, reported the Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street" column.
• A rebel Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD) shareholder will describe how the company's stake in U.S. mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless is a "cash drain" on Vodafone, reported the Financial Times (subscription required).
  
• The Financial Times also reported that Franklin Resources Inc (NYSE: BEN) is planning a strong push into the U.K., where it has so far failed to gain traction.

OTHER PAPERS:

• The replacement for NZ Telecom Corporation (NYSE: NZT) CEO Theresa Gattung, who is retiring after eight years on the job, is not yet known but expected to be announced before the end of the week, reported the New Zealand Herald.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc (CMG), Caterpillar Inc (CAT), The9 Ltd (NCTY), Teekay Shipping Corp (TK) and Ship Finance International Ltd (SFL) were on today's noteworthy downgrade list:

• Morgan Joseph cut Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) to Hold from Buy on valuation.

• Stifel downgraded Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) to Hold from Buy on valuation.

• Pacific Crest cut shares of The9 (NASDAQ: NCTY) to Sector Perform from Outperform with a $41 target following the disappointing Q1 results and slow start to the second quarter.

• Banc of America downgraded shares of Teekay Shipping (NYSE: TK) and Ship Finance Int'l (NYSE: SFL) to Neutral from Buy on valuation and a lack of near-term catalysts...

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Matrix USA cut Valhi, Inc (NYSE: VHI) to Sell from Hold.

• UBS downgraded Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) to Neutral from Buy.

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

The Wall Street Journal reported today that four mutual fund companies reported rising profits [subscription required] that met or surpassed Wall Street's estimates. Amvescap, Janus, Federated Investors, and Franklin Resources all reported strong numbers, and Fidelity Investments reported that its assets under managements had grown 19% to a staggering $1.77 trillion.

Why am I mentioning this? In order to be a savvy fund investors, it's important to know how they earn money. Assets under management is far, far more important than fund performance. Fund performance only matters to the extent that it helps them attract new investors. Take a look at the numbers:

If a fund charges a 2% expense ratio, has $100 under management at the beginning of the year, and earns a return of 5% for its investors, the fund company will earn $2.10 (before its own expenses).

If a fund charges a 2% expense ratio, has $100 under management at the beginning of the year, and earns a return of 25% for its investors, the fund company will earn $2.40 (before its own expenses).

In other words, a return that is five times as good for investors will only increase the fund company's earnings 14%. The interests of the fund manager are not aligned with the fund holders'. By increasing its assets under management, a fund adds a corresponding amount to its revenue -- 20% growth in assets under management means 20% more revenue for the firm.

So when you're evaluating mutual funds, remember this: Their business is asset gathering, not investing.