McDonald's (MCD) closed at $63.20. MCD is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on January 22. February and March put option implied volatility is at 18, June puts are at 20, versus its 26-week average of 20 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Hansen Natural (HANS) closed at $40.53. HANS is expected to report Q4 EPS in late February. February option implied volatility is at 25, March is at 36, June is at 38, versus its 26-week average of 42, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS - option chain) shares are rising today after the company reported its first-quarter profit rose 44.3% to $41.6 million, or 44 cents per share, beating analysts' forecasts of 37 cents per share. Last year in the first quarter, HANS earned 29 cents per share. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on HANS.

HANS opened this morning at $41.38. So far today the stock has hit a low of $39.42 and a high of $41.88. As of 11:40, HANS is trading at $41.17, up $3.11 (8.17%). The chart for HANS looks bullish.

Since trading close to $25 per share in early 2007, shares of the former Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS) heir-apparent Jones Soda (NASDAQ: JSDA) have tanked. They closed on Friday at a stunning 75 cents per share, down more than 27% on the day.

On October 6th, the company reduced its workforce by 38% to 68 employees, adding that termination and severance expenses were not expected to be material. CEO Stephen Jones said that "Given the financial crisis we're in, you have to preserve cash. Cutting back people is a horrible thing to go through, but you do it as a result of strategy. And my strategy is to focus on the core of what Jones Soda is."

Jones (whose surname is a coincidence) told Fortune Small Business about an ambitious plan to focus on core strengths, reduce sales to discounters, and bring the company back from the brink. Maybe that will work but, either way, the stock looks interesting at its current price. With a market cap of about $20 million, Jones Soda had tangible shareholder's equity of about $27 million at the end of the second quarter -- including nearly $20 million in cash and short-term investments.

Beverage stocks are often considered "defensive" in nature. After all, no matter what troubles beset the economy, people continue to eat and drink.

Granted, a recessionary environment might impact purveyors of expensive champagnes. But our focus here is on everyday canned sodas and moderately-priced beer and wine.

Of course, no report on beverages would be complete without the two giants of the field -- Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP).

Chuck Carlson, editor of The DRIP Investor looks at Pepsi and suggests, "Investors should take advantage of the current price lull to do buying in these shares."

... Read the full article on PepsiCo

Meanwhile, Stephen Leeb, editor of The Complete Investor, looks at Coke and is attracted by both its expanding market opportunities and expanding dividend.

... Read the full article on Coca-Cola

Bottling these drinks is also big business and PepsiAmericas (NYSE: PAS) -- the world's second-largest bottler of PepsiCo beverages -- is a recent feature from quantitative analyst Vahan Janjigan, editor of The Forbes Growth Investor.

... Read the full article on PepsiAmericas

Energy drink maker Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS) has caught the eye of Bill Martin. The editor of BullMarket.com finds the stock attractive because the company has recently attracted some hedge fund investors.

... Read the full article on Hansen Natural

In The Forbes International Investment Report, editor John Christy interviews Lou Gerken of Gerken Capital Associates who sees potential in FEMSA (NYSE: FMX), which produces distributes Coca-Cola, Dos Equis, Tecate Beer in Mexico.

... Read the full article on FEMSA

And Nilus Mattive in his Dividend Superstars newsletter, looks to Chilean wine maker, Vina Concha y Toro (NYSE: VCO) as a play for both growth and income investors.

... Read the full article on Vina Concha y Toro

This report is prepared by Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com which offers a daily overview of the favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS) is recently trading down $3.65 to $40.50 in pre-open trading.

HANS reported Q4 EPS of 45 cents versus consensus estimates of 38 cents. Q4 net income was up 103% from last year.

Goldman Sachs says: "the stock fell after-hours based on the margin disappointment and because headline sales growth slowed from 61% in 4Q to 33% in Jan/Feb."

HANS overall option implied volatility of 64 is near its 26-week average of 62 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS) was trading up $1.29 to $38.50 in pre-open trading.

UBS Warburg believes Coke (NYSE: KO) has been looking into a potential acquisition of HANS.

Stifel says: "We reiterate our Buy rating on HANS after shares declined yesterday following a note from an independent research firm."

HANS February option implied volatility of 74 is above its 26-week average of 60 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

A specialist in "breakout" candidates, Leo Fasciocco sees upside potential in Hansen Natural (NASDAQ: HANS), a maker of sodas, juices and teas.

In his Ticker Tape Digest, the technical advisor says, "The company is showing tremendous profit growth. And at current prices, he says, the shares are attractive for value and growth investors.

The company, he notes, has expanded its drink line to include a wide variety of energy drinks, such as the popular Monster brand. Its other products are fruit juice, smoothies, lemonade, iced tea, and spring water -- most of which are sold under the Hansen's brand name.

He points out that the company is also branching out with soy drinks and juices aimed at toddlers.

Technically, he explains, the stock's daily chart of HANS shows a breakout; its momentum indicator is very bullish and getting stronger. The analys adds, "The accumulation - distribution line is making new peaks. That shows the price advance is being supported by good buying."

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• UBS upgraded US Steel Corp (NYSE: X) to Neutral from Reduce to reflect the Q2 price hike and strong international demand.

• Stifel upgraded Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA) to Hold from Sell on valuation.

• JP Morgan upgraded Hansen Natural Corp (NASDAQ: HANS) to Overweight from Neutral citing valuation and recent positive developments.

• Soleil believes Take-Two Interactive Software Inc (NASDAQ: TTWO) could enjoy support from the success of the investor group in voting in 5 new board directors and replacing the current CEO.

• Lehman upgraded LG Philips LCD Co, Ltd (NYSE: LPL) to Equal-Weight from Underweight to reflect an earlier-than-expected turnaround for the LCD industry.

• RBC hiked Sonic Corp (NASDAQ: SONC) up to Peer Perform from Underperform with a $23 target.

• Credit Suisse believes Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT) has the most attractive risk/reward in the construction and farm machinery sector and added the stock to its Focus List today.

• Stifel upgraded Broadcom Corp (NASDAQ: BRCM) To Buy from Hold with a $40 target.

• Matrix USA upgraded NetGear, Inc (NASDAQ: NTGR) to Buy from Hold on valuation.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Research in Motion was initiated with a Neutral at Nollenberger Capital Partners based on valuation and a challenging competitive landscape.
  
• Hansen Natural was initiated with a Buy and a $42 target at Stifel Nicolaus & Co. based on an attractive valuation and the company's growing share in the alternative beverage market.
  

• Coach (NYSE:COH) was initiated with a Buy and a $57 target at Citigroup based on compelling growth and the opportunity for margin expansion.
  
• ValueClick (NASDAQ:VCLK) was initiated with an Average and a $23 target at Caris & Co. Although the firm believes the company has a deeper product portfolio than any other company in internet advertising, it notes that there is significant competition, including Google (NASDAQ:GOOG).

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Hansen Natural (HANS) and SAP AG (SAP) were the notable initiations today:

• JP Morgan initiated Hansen Natural Corp. (NASDAQ:HANS) with an Overweight rating and $44 target and was added to the Focus List; the firm believes Hansen is well-positioned to benefit in the rapid energy drink category, has an attractive business model and, based on its growth potential, could be an attractive acquisition target.
• Bank of America resumed their coverage of SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) with a Neutral rating and $55 target, seeing few catalysts to create an upside to consensus estimates.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Roth Capital initiated Kana Software Inc. (NASDAQ:KANA) with a Buy rating and $4 target, explaining that demand environment for the customer service segment of CRM is attractive, as many vendors targeting the segment are reporting strong results.
• First Albany initiated Dress Barn Inc. (NASDAQ:DBRN) with a Buy rating and $28 target, and is positive on the company's momentum, value pricing and marketing efforts.
• JP Morgan started Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ:HAIN) with an Overweight rating; they expect high-teen annual EPS growth and believe shares will outperform the group.

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

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Ericsson (ERIC), Intel (INTC) and General Electric (GE) top today's upgrade list.

• Ericsson Telephone Co. (NASDAQ:ERIC) was upgraded at RBC Capital Markets to Outperform from Sector Perform. The upgrade followed checks that indicated the mobile phone maker gained market share and improved its top-line metrics.
• Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) and General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) were added to Citigroup's Recommended List.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Cephalon, Inc. (NASDAQ:CEPH) was upgraded at CIBC to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer citing expectations for strong Fentora and Provigil sales.
• Hansen Natural Corp. (NASDAQ:HANS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Canaccord Adams and added to their Best Ideas List citing reduced Street expectations and valuation.

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

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Hansen Natural (HANS), CVS Corp (CVS) and Career Education (CECO) top today's extensive list of downgrades.

• Hansen Natural Corp. (NASDAQ:HANS) was removed from Goldman Sachs Conviction Buy List due to the lack of near-term catalysts.
• CVS Corp (NYSE:CVS) was removed from the Focus List at Merrill Lynch.
• Career Education Corp. (NASDAQ:CECO) was downgraded to Hold from Strong Buy at Matrix USA due to the declining environment that is leading to slower sales growth.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• A.G. Edwards downgraded Westwood One, Inc (NYSE:WON) to Sell from Hold as fundamentals are not stabilizing. Deutsche Bank also downgraded the media programmer to Hold from Buy.
• Avaya, Inc. (NYSE:AV) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Morgan Keegan.
• Finally, Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Inc. (NYSE:POT) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS on valuation.

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