Here are some highlights from last week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Aflac Inc. (NYSE: AFL) reported strong Q3 results, declared a dividend, and offered guidance for Q4.
• Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) Q3 earnings slumped and revenue was hurt by currency translations.
• BP (NYSE: BP) shares leaped higher after it reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
• Daimler AG (NYSE: DAI) reported that it returned to profitability in Q3 but warned of decreasing revenue.
• General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) Q3 earnings beat expectations and it lifted its earnings outlook.
• Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) posted strong Q3 earnings and expects full-year earnings ahead of forecasts.

General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) turned in a quarterly profit that beat expectations. The business of battle overshadowed aviation industry contraction, which contributed to the result. Thanks to the strong Q3, General Dynamics has raised its profit forecast for the year.

JPMorgan analyst Joseph Nadol wrote to his clients this morning that "the stock has been strong recently" and "there is no denying that the company posted good results." But, he also observed that the near-term upside is limited, because investors expected a solid Q3, and the company still faces some pressure from a pretty sharp drop in its aerospace backlog.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Polaris Industries (NYSE: PII) to Buy from Hold after channel checks indicated the company's sales trends improved through September. The firm raised its target on shares to $49 from $33.
• Jefferies upgraded Citrix Systems (NASDAQ: CTXS) to Hold from Underperform after channel checks indicated IT spending will be strong in the second half of 2009, but the firm finds the stock fully valued at current levels. Jefferies raised its target on shares to $40 from $32.
• Pali Captital upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and expectations that lower pricing and international growth will be catalysts going forward. The firm set a $45 price target on shares.
• Plum Creek Timber (NYSE: PCL) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Advanced Micro (NYSE: AMD) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• PPD Inc. (NASDAQ: PPDI) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.

Analyst upgrades:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) to Buy from Hold on expectations that oil supply will begin to tighten and demand rise. The firm has a $55 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Pinnacle West (NYSE: PNW) to Buy from Hold and added the stock to its Top Picks Live list. The firm expects the company's settlement in Arizona to be approved and raised its target on shares to $35 from $32.
• RBC Capital upgraded NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) to Outperform from Sector Perform as it believes that the company is performing better than expected during its October quarter. The firm expects the company to continue to execute well during subsequent quarters and it raised its target to $33.
• Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• PetSmart (NASDAQ: PETM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.
• General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Analyst upgrades:

• Collins Stewart upgraded General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) to Buy from Hold as it finds the valuation compelling at current levels and sees potential upside from a better economy and better-than-expected defense budgets.
• SunTrust views the sell-off in shares of Cabot Oil (NYSE: COG) as a buying opportunity and expects the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection order to be resolved quickly. The firm upgraded Cabot to Buy from Neutral.
• Barclays upgraded Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) to Overweight from Equal Weight based on expectations for improved carrier demand, continued U.S. momentum, and an improved Europe.
• Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
• Stericycle (NASDAQ: SRCL) was upgraded to Gradually Accumulate from Hold at Soleil.
• Grupo Televisa (NYSE: TV) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.

"Investors considering high-yield stocks should consider financial strength; in our quantitative model, Quadrix, we assess profit margins, interest coverage, and debt levels," says Richard Moroney.

In Dow Theory Forecasts, a newsletter that has been published for over 5 decades -- he looks at two stocks that score high in this area: drug manufacturer, AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) and defense industry player, General Dynamics (NYSE: GD). Here, the advisor reviews the two companies.

"AstraZeneca's operating cash flow jumped 24% in the first half of 2009, allowing the company to retire $3 billion in debt since the end of 2008.

"Golf has Tiger Woods, novelists have Tom Clancy, and the investment community has stars such as Bruce Berkowitz, Bill Nygren, Charlie Dreifus, and Mario Gabelli," states Paul Tracy.

In his The Street Authority Market Advisor, he suggests, "These money managers are at the pinnacle of their craft." Here, he takes a look at these "celebrities" and some of their current top stock holdings.

"These money managers have all amassed prodigious gains over the years for their shareholders. Over the past few months, these gurus have come out with ringing endorsements for certain stocks. This isn't empty talk -- they are putting their money where their mouth is.

Analyst upgrades:

• Goldman upgraded Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) to Conviction Buy from Neutral and raised their target to $90 from $60. Goldman cites ICE's positioning and potential for upward EPS revisions for the upgrade.
  
• Jefferies upgraded FMC Technologies (NYSE: FTI) to Buy from Hold as they believe solid deepwater activity levels will lead to solid EPS results in 2009 and 2010. The firm raised their price target to $45 from $27.
  
• Friedman Billings upgraded Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN) to Outperform from Market Perform on valuation and expects significant improvement in basis differentials for the company's Barnett production starting the second half of Q2. The firm raised their price target to $60 from $50.
• Elan Corp (NYSE: ELN) was raised to Neutral from Sell at Piper Jaffray.
  
• Banco Santander (NYSE: STD) was upgraded at Keefe Bruyette to Outperform from Market Perform.

Analyst upgrades:

• Banc of America/Merrill upgraded DPL Inc (NYSE: DPL) to Neutral from Underperform following the settlement agreement with staff of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio on Electric Security Plan.
  
• Friedman Billings upgraded SeaBright Insurance (NYSE: SBX) to Outperform from Market Perform on valuation as they believe shares are oversold at current levels. Despite upgrading, the firm lowered its target price to $14 from $16.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded AT&T (T) to Overweight from Neutral as it believes upside earnings revisions are likely in 2009 due to the company's conservative wireline margin outlook. The firm finds the stock's valuation attractive at current levels and raised their target on shares to $28 from $24.
• Chubb (NYSE: CB) was upgraded to buy from Neutral at UBS.
  
• Cascal B.V. (NYSE: HOO) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
  
• Healthcare Realty Trust (NYSE: HR) was upgraded at Keefe Bruyette to Outperform from Market Perform.

If you've been watching earnings this past week, or if you read last week's Week in Preview, then this coming week may leave you feeling a bit like Bill Murray in Groundhog's Day. That is, again analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect earnings declines to be more frequent and deeper than earnings gains.

Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT), Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW), Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC), IAC Interactivecorp (NASDAQ: IACI), Moody's Corp. (NYSE: MCO), Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN), Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN), Diebold Inc. (NYSE: DBD), Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC), United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL), ITT Corp. (NYSE: ITT), and Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) are scheduled to report quarterly results this week, and they're all expected to report double-digit declines in earnings.

But again this week, let's take a look who Wall Street feels may have done well in the past quarter.

U.S. stock futures were lower Wednesday morning, indicating stocks may have a second day of declines. As money markets worldwide continue improving, attention has shifted to corporate earnings and concerns are growing how a global slowdown would slow them. Asian markets closed sharply lower and European stocks tumbled at the open as well. Meanwhile, oil veered below $70 a barrel again despite a probably OPEC production cut on fears the U.S. economy is headed into a sever recession that would crimp demand for oil. Today weekly crude inventories will be released.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is one company that is bucking the earnings trend. The consumer electronics giant reported results after the close Tuesday, surprising the Street with higher earnings as all three product categories showed improvement. Specifically it sold far more iPhones than expected, actually outselling market-leading BlackBerry from Research in Motion Ltd (NASDAQ: RIMM). The company, known for always lowballing estimates, gave a weak outlook that didn't affect investors sentiment much. AAPL shares, which jumped nearly 13% in after-hours trading, are up nearly 8% this morning in pre-market trade. Analysts liked in general iPhone sales with Calyon Securities upgrading Apple to Buy from Add, and Goldman Sachs recommending investors to buy shares. Still, UBS has downgraded Apple from Buy to Neutral.

Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO)'s show, on the other hand, was quite different than Apple's. While the stock is also up in pre-market action -- 2.7% (it was up 7% in after-hours trade Tuesday afternoon) -- it is mainly due to the severe cost cuts the internet giant has announced during the dusmal earnings release. As it was saying profit plunged 64%, Yahoo! also said it is redcucing its workforce by 10% or some 1,500 employees.

Wall Street's optimism in last week's preview about the earnings of tech stocks wasn't misplaced, as there were many more positive surprises than negative ones among the stocks we looked at. This week will bring plenty more data for investors in and watchers of the sector to mull over. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), for example, are expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial to post modest earnings gains from a year ago, to $1.11 per share (on $8.1 billion in sales), $0.72 per share (on $31.3 billion in sales), and $0.47 per share (on $14.8 billion in sales) respectively. All three of these companies ended the week closer to their 52-week lows than highs, and analysts on average consider them each a buy.

Here's a look at some of the week's biggest expected earnings gainers and decliners in the sector:

• Baidu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU): $1.25 per share (+44.0%) on revenues of $134.7 million (+103.2%)
• Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM): $0.44 per share (+38.6%) on revenues of $1.3 billion (+33.8%)
• QLogic Corp. (NASDAQ: QLGC): $0.31 per share (+29.0%) on revenues of $170.0 million (+21.2%)
• FLIR Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR): $0.32 per share (+28.1%) on revenues of $275.2 million (+44.0%)
• Juniper Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: JNPR): $0.30 per share (+26.7%) on revenues of $927.4 million (+26.2%)
• Waters Corp. (NYSE: WAT): $0.75 per share (+17.3%) on revenues of $391.6 million (+11.1%)
• Flextronics International Ltd. (NASDAQ: FLEX): $0.29 per share (+17.2%) on revenues of $8.7 billion (+57.3%)
• EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC): $0.19 per share (+10.5%) on revenues of $3.7 billion (+12.9%)

This post is part of a series in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked financial experts to name their top stock pick if McCain or if Obama wins the election.

"The GOP is traditionally known as the party that spends more on defense; thus, if McCain wins the election, one stock to benefit would be defense firm General Dynamics (NYSE: GD)," says John Reese, editor of Validea, which follows the strategies of "legendary" investors such as Warren Buffett and Peter Lynch.

"While McCain has talked tough about reforming the defense budget, he has also pledged to increase the size of the military, modernize the armed services, and push hard for strong missile defense systems -- all of which require serious spending.

"As a major producer of battle tanks and assault vehicles, armaments and munitions, battleships and nuclear submarines, and military information technology systems, this Virginia-based firm is thus likely to have quite a bit of work on its hands during a McCain presidency.

"Just as importantly, General Dynamics' finances and fundamentals are very strong, earning approval from both my Peter Lynch and Warren Buffett-based Guru Strategies -- computer models that are each based on the approach of a different investing great.

"Because of its moderate 18.14% long-term growth rate and huge annual sales of $28.7 billion, General Dynamics is considered a 'stalwart' by my Lynch strategy, the type of large, steady firm that Lynch found offered protection during downturns or recessions.

"Two big reasons my Lynch model is high on this stalwart: its yield-adjusted P/E/Growth ratio of 0.75, which signals that the stock is a bargain right now, and its 18.79% debt/equity ratio, a sign that GD has the conservative financing Lynch liked to see."

My Buffett-based model, meanwhile, likes General Dynamics' consistency. Over the past decade, its EPS have declined just once, rising from $1.46 to $5.10 in that time.

"The company's annual return on equity -- a figure Buffett used to find firms with the 'durable competitive advantage' he famously prizes -- has been at least 16.4% every year.

"GD has also retained $22.30 in per-share earnings in the past decade while increasing EPS by $3.64, showing it can earn investors a 16.3% return on the earnings it keeps. That's a sign of the strong management Buffett is also known to look for."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

This post is part of a series in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked financial experts to name their top stock pick if McCain or if Obama wins the election.

Which stocks would benefit from a victory by either Senator John McCain or Senator Barack Obama? To help investors sort through the sectors and stocks best positioned to benefit in a post-election environment, we posed this question to some of the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Importantly, this is not a partisan report; each participating advisor has provided a favorite stock for both candidates, focused not on political preferences but unbiased stock analysis. Below we feature those stocks and ETFs that the advisors believe will be the winners depending on which candidate prevails.

McCain Stocks:

Roger Conrad - Comcast (NYSE: CCW)
Gregg Early - Elbit Systems (NASDAQ: ESLT)
Elliott Gue - Paladin Resources (Toronto: PDN)
Doug Fabian - Market Vectors Nuclear Energy (NYSE: NLR)
Vivian Lewis - Barclays (NYSE: BCS)
Bill Martin - CGG Veritas (NYSE: CGV)'
Yiannis Mostrous - Lonking Holdings (OTC: CIMHF)
Carla Pasternak - Eaton Vance Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund (NYSE: EVT)
Nate Pile - SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD)
John Reese - General Dynamics (NYSE: GD)
Nathan Slaughter - USEC (NYSE: USU)
Paul Tracy - Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR)
Kelley Wright - CenturyTel (NYSE: CTL)
Tom Vass - Molex (NASDAQ: MOLX)
Martin Hutchinson - Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC), Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK), EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG)

Obama Stocks:

Roger Conrad - SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR)
Gregg Early - AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV)
Elliott Gue - SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR)
Doug Fabian - Industrial Select Sector SPDR (NYSE: XLI)
Vivian Lewis - Cosan (NYSE: CZZ)
Bill Martin - Geron (NASDAQ: GERN)
Yiannis Mostrous - Dr. Reddy's (NYSE: RDY)
Carla Pasternak - Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP)
Nate Pile - Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)
John Reese - American Eagle (NYSE: AEO)
Nathan Slaughter - Fluor (NYSE: FLR)
Paul Tracy - Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy (NYSE: GEX)
Kelley Wright - Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH)
Tom Vass - Ingersoll Rand (NYSE: IR)
Martin Hutchinson - Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR)

If John McCain wants my vote he must dump Sarah Palin and fast. Judging by the latest polls showing Barack Obama moving ahead and gaining traction, I'm not the only one that feels this way. The outcome of the election is key to investors worried about a range of issues including the $700 billion federal bailout of Wall Street.

Obama may lack the experience I would hope to see in a presidential candidate but to quote a friend and fellow McCain supporter "Sarah Palin is an idiot and the only way she should be allowed in the White House is if she buys a tour ticket." This is not a unique sentiment given the Sarah Palin must go stance taken by conservative columnist Kathleen Parker of the Los Angeles Times. She says her cringe reflex is being exhausted.

I do not like Obama's proposals on capital gains taxes, a windfall oil profits tax, new government programs and several other issues, but the idea of Palin being second-in-command is a joke. And speaking of jokes, if I have misjudged, and McCain and Palin win the election, then Oprah will be surpassed as the wealthiest female in the entertainment industry. The new titan will be 30 Rock and former Saturday Night Live star Tina Fey who will be racking up fat paychecks based on the never ending material supplied by Palin.