Of the millions of business across America, only a small percentage are incorporated. Perhaps one of the biggest reasons is the cost. For example, in California there is a whopping $800 franchise tax fee. Yes, in today's tough economic environment, this is certainly a big deal.

Another problem is the paperwork, which can distract from your business.

But if you want to operate a sustainable business, you should really think seriously about incorporating. The benefits often outweigh the costs. Let's take a look:

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Lowe's (LOW), Cooper Tire & Rubber (CTB), Campbell Soup (CPB), Reuters Group (RTRSY) and Netease.com (NTES) were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• JP Morgan upgraded Lowe's (NYSE: LOW) to Overweight from Neutral based on improved risk/return and conservative near-term estimates. UBS upgraded Lowe's to Buy from sell on valuation.

• Cooper Tire & Rubber (NYSE: CTB) was upgraded to Buy from Sell, as the firm thinks Copper is benefiting from surging demand for tires in Asia and considers the recent weakness a buying opportunity.

• UBS upgraded shares of Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB) to Buy from Neutral, citing expected growth acceleration, productivity savings, and attractive valuation.

• Deutsche Bank is positive on the Thomson (TOC)-Reuters combination and expected synergies, upgrading Reuters Group (NASDAQ: RTRSY) to Buy from Hold.

• Netease.com (NASDAQ: NTES) was upgraded to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna based on valuation and checks that indicate better than expected performance of Westward Journey Online III...

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Georgia Gulf (NYSE: GGC) was raised to Neutral from Sell.

• US Airways (NYSE: LCC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral.

• Banc of America upgraded Glu Mobile (NASDAQ: GLUU) to Buy from Neutral.

• Think Equity upgraded Jazz Technologies (AMEX: JAZ) to Buy from Source of Funds.

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

America is all Online now, right? TimeWarner says that its division, American Online, has now accomplished its eponymous mission and managed to get America, from purple mountains to fruited plains, on the Internet. Thus the division is changing its name officially to "AOL LLC."

The "LLC" organization will reflect the 5% stake Google purchased last week.

According to an email sent to all employees (including yours truly), "consumers already know us by our initials and believe that AOL stands for a more contemporary Internet company." I can't imagine this news will have much of an impact on the consumer experience -- I mean, when was the last time you said "America Online"? -- but it's interesting to hear the rationale behind it.

(And, as an aside, this news comes at about the same time the company rolls out all new business cards for its AOL employees - they're pretty and vertical and so much better than the old ones. I wonder if there's any correlation between vertically-oriented business cards and stock price?)