masterard posts
FeedPosted Feb 13th 2007 10:55AM by Kevin Shult (RSS feed)
Filed under: Before the Bell, Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades, Good news, General Motors (GM), 3M Corporation (MMM), Brinker Intl (EAT), MasterCard Inc'A' (MA), Level 3 Communications (LVLT)
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Level 3 Communications Inc (LVLT) and General Motors Corp (GM) were today's notable upgrades:
- Deutsche Bank raised Level 3 Communications Inc (NASDAQ: LVLT) to Hold from Sell with a $5.40 target based on the belief the company will meet 2007 expectations.
- General Motors Corp (NYSE: GM) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Buy from Sell based on increased confidence the company will leverage its liquidity and legacy assets, specifically its pension, to drive positive changes.
OTHER UPGRADES:
- MasterCard inc (NYSE: MA) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan on valuation.
- Prudential upgraded Brinker Int'l Inc (NYSE: EAT) to Overweight from Neutral.
- Following the company's strong Q4 report, Piper Jaffray upgraded shares of Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd ADS (NASDAQ: SNDA) to Outperform from Market Perform with a $29 target, citing improved fundamentals and increased confidence in the come-stay-play model, among other reasons.
- Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment (NYSE: DDE) moved to Hold from Sell at Stifel Nicolaus, citing valuation.
- Prudential raised HealthNet Inc (NYSE: HNT) to Neutral from Underweight, with a $52 target.
- 3M Company (NYSE: MMM) was raised to Buy from Hold with an $86 target at Soleil Securities following last nights $7B buyback announcement, which the firm believes will act as a positive catalyst.
- Bear Stearns upgraded Applebee's Int'l Inc (NASDAQ: APPB) to Peer Perform from Underperform following the company's announcement that it hired a financial adviser to explore strategic alternatives.
- Credit Suisse upgraded Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW) to Outperform from Neutral, with a $37 target.
Analyst summaries provided by
TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).
Posted Jan 23rd 2007 11:53AM by Kevin Shult (RSS feed)
Filed under: Before the Bell, MasterCard Inc'A' (MA), Analyst Initiations
MOST NOTEWORTHY: The Railroad Sector and Obagi Medical (OMPI) were today's most notable initiations:
- Calyon Securities initiated coverage on the following stocks, all with Neutral ratings, including Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp (NYSE: BNI), Canadian National Railway Co (NYSE: CNI), Canadian Pacific Ltd (NYSE: CP), CSX Corp (NYSE: CSX), Norfolk Southern Corp (NYSE: NSC).and Union Pacific Corp (NYSE: UNP).
- Obagi Medical (NASDAQ: OMPI) was initiated by Baird with an Outperform rating and $13 target; CIBC started the specialty pharmaceutical company with a Sector Outperformer rating and $14 target, saying the company is a pure play in the rapidly-growing aesthetics market and has expectations that the company's growth will accelerate due to the rise in physician-dispensed products.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
- MasterCard Inc (NYSE: MA) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Merrill Lynch.
- Xoma Ltd (NASDAQ: XOMA) was initiated with a Market Outperform rating at Rodman & Renshaw. The firm said XOMA's antibody technology licenses and manufacturing provide an important source of consistent and growing commercial revenues. Additionally, the broker said Raptiva is becoming a more meaningful contributor.
Analyst summaries provided by
TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).
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