Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) to Buy from Hold on expectations the company's top-line growth rate could be more sustainable than expected and its operating margins could recover given due to less retail discounting. The firm raised its price target on shares to $97 from $65.
  
• UBS upgraded King Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: KG) to Buy from Sell based on expectations that Sandoz will settle patent litigation regarding Skelaxin after last weeks settlement of Clarinex with Schering-Plough (SGP).
  
• Jefferies upgraded Reliance Steel (NYSE: RS) to Buy from Hold as it believes steel prices and demand are close to near-term bottoms. The firm raised its target on the stock to $44 from $25.
• Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.
  
• Nestle (OTC: NSRGY) was lifted to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.
• Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) was upgraded at Wachovia to Outperform from Market Perform.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) shares to Buy from Hold on valuation following the recent sell-off as they believe weakening fundamentals have been factored into estimates and that Blue Nile should benefit from the recent softening of diamond prices. The firm raised its target price to $30 from $20.
  
• Baird upgraded AmSurg (NASDAQ: AMSG) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation, potential upside from in-line results, good visibility, and FCF yield.
  
• Oppenheimer upgraded DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS) to Perform from Underperform on valuation following the recent weakness and believes the company is at least halfway through its $500M equity offering.
• UAL Corp (NASDAQ: UAUA) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.
  
• Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
  
• Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was lifted at Deutsche Bank to Buy from Hold.

As John, Paul, George, and Ringo once said, "Money can't buy me love." While true, money can buy long-stemmed roses, expensive dinners, theater tickets, and jewelry. On the flip side, this money can be tucked away for a rainy day -- the fancy floral delivery replaced with daisies from the grocery store, the pricey meal forgone for the cozy neighborhood spot (or fondue at home).

Many of us have long criticized St. Valentine's Day as a holiday conceptualized and fueled by Hallmark and American Greetings (NYSE: AM). But even more of us fall into its trap, spending a nice chunk of change in mid-February to prove our affection to our significant other.

If you thought Black Friday was just for brick-and-mortar retail, think again. The official start of the online shopping rush is the Monday after the Thanksgiving holiday (Cyber Monday is its name), but don't think that companies like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) are going to wait that long. They're in the game now. And they want your attention. More importantly, they want you to use the virtual shopping carts at their respective sites early and often. It's really crucial this year, because the economy stinks, and growth in spending isn't going to be great.

According to CNBC, Amazon's strategy is to use very low prices as a way of stopping competitors like eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) dead in their electronic tracks. This Christmas season, retailers, whether online or not, may find themselves in a no-win situation. They have to lower prices to encourage people to shop. But quality growth in top-line sales is questionable. When managements see the bad news flow about the global recession, they become scared and want to become even more aggressive in terms of pricing. The strategy may work and it may not. It's a vicious circle. Don't get me wrong, the retail industry faces this problem every year at this time, but you have to agree that the current economic cycle is particularly noxious. It's times like these, however, when retailers should want to offer more than just a value proposition. They should want to offer a differentiated shopping experience, a better selection of items. They should strive to offer up a brand image that makes you want to hit their inventories first. They need to step away from trying to undercut all their competitors and instead figure out how to stock the right merchandise in the right amounts. And when it comes to a business like Amazon, I think there's great opportunity to go beyond low-pricing strategies. Quite frankly, I don't care whether Amazon has the lowest prices or not. I find it easier to do some of my holiday shopping on the site. It saves me time during this busy season, I trust the security of the platform, and I know that the supply chain is efficient and reliable. And I definitely think of Amazon first when looking to do online shopping because of its valuable brand equity.

Analyst upgrades:

• Baird expects Thor Industries (NYSE: THO) to benefit from industry consolidation and the eventual recovery. Shares were upgraded to Neutral from Underperform.
  
• Jefferies upgraded SPSS Inc. (NASDAQ: SPSS) to Buy from Hold on valuation and believes the company's cost cuts will be positive for EPS. The company's target was lowered to $28 from $29.
  
• Banc of America upgraded shares of Entergy (NYSE: ETR) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and believes the company is unlikely to spin-off Enexus by year-end. They believe a spin-off in 2009 or no spin at all suggests a higher share price from current levels. The company's target was raised to $104 from $101.50.
• AMN Healthcare (NYSE: AMN) was upgraded to hold from Sell at Citigroup.
  
• Argus upgraded Choice Hotels (NYSE: CHH) to Hold from Sell.
  
• Transdigm Group (NYSE: TDG) was lifted to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Analyst downgrades:

MOST NOTEWORTHY: DaVita, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and Ascent Solar were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Suntrust expects DaVita's (NYSE: DVA) dominant market share to help in commercial contract negotiations and they view potential Medicare reimbursement changes as more of an opportunity than a risk. The firm started shares with a Buy rating and $62 target.
  
• JP Morgan initiated Dr. Pepper Snapple (NYSE: DPS) with an Underweight rating and expects declining free cash flow in 2008, which they note would be the third straight year.
  
• Ascent Solar (NASDAQ: ASTI) was assumed with a Hold rating and $14 target at Jefferies. The firm sees high development risk with the company just beginning to operate its pilot line and commencing initial planning for its first 30 MW commercial line.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Stanford initiated ViroPharma (NASDAQ: VPHM) with a Buy rating and $13 target.
  
• Goldman assumed Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) with Buy ratings and targets of $163 and $55, respectively.
• Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) was initiated at Thomas Weisel with an Underweight rating and $44 target.

Morgan Stanley downgraded China Unicom (NYSE:CHU) from "outperform" to "neutral", according to Briefing.com. The news service also reports that UBS downgraded CSX (NYSE:CSX) from "buy" to "neutral"

Abercrombie (NYSE:ANF) cut to Market Perform at FBR, according to 24/7 Wall St. The financial website also reports that Blue Nile (NASDAQ:NILE) Started as Underweight at Thomas Weisel.

Douglas A. McIntyre

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Taubman Centers, AstraZeneca and Blue Nile were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Friedman Billings believes Taubman Centers (NYSE: TCO) is very well positioned with its upscale regional malls and lifestyle centers to weather the current challenges in the current retail environment. Shares were assumed with an Outperform rating and $64 target.
  
• JP Morgan initiated AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) with a Neutral rating. The firm expects investor confidence in the coming months to improve as expectations are AZN's pipeline is low.
  
• Deutsche Bank finds Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) fairly valued given the challenging economic environment and rising commodity prices and initiated shares with a Hold rating and $48 target.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Wachovia started American Water Works (NYSE: AWK) with a Market Perform rating.
  
• Heartland Payment (NYSE: HPY) was assumed with a Buy rating and $33 target at Citigroup.
  
• Goldman resumed coverage of AbitibiBowater (NYSE: ABH) with a Neutral rating.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Nvidia, Entropic Comm and Cleveland Cliffs were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Piper initiated Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) with a Neutral rating and $23 target and believes the rate at which the company gained market share over the past two years is unsustainable. The firm expects EPS deceleration over the next few years.
  
• Piper believes Entropic Comm (NASDAQ: ENTR) is a key benefactor from the general adoption of high definition video consumer goods, as well as from growth in multi-room DVRs. The firm assumed shares with a Buy rating and $10 target.
  
• Cleveland Cliffs (NYSE: CLF) was started with a Buy rating and $135 target at Deutsche Bank. The firm believes CLF is a leveraged play on bulk commodities' momentum.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Merrill initiated Allied Capital (NYSE: ALD) with a Neutral rating.
  
• Stifel initiated Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) with a Buy rating and $54 target, and initiated Bank of Florida (NASDAQ: BOFL) with a Buy rating.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Morgan Stanley, Boardwalk Pipeline and Brasil Telecom were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Oppenheimer downgraded Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) to Perform from Outperform based on limited upside to its revised earnings outlook.
  
• RBC downgraded shares of Boardwalk Pipeline (NYSE: BWP) to Sector Perform from Outperform following the company's Q4 results, due to overruns and project delays.
  
• Brasil Telecom (NYSE: BRP) was lowered to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan on corporate governance share concerns.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Wachovia lowered Gibraltar Industries (NASDAQ: ROCK) and Masco (NYSE: MAS) to Market Perform from Outperform.
  
• Citigroup lowered Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) to Hold from Buy.

Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE), a leading online retailer of diamonds and jewelry, is recently down $14.64 (or over 27%) to $39.20 in pre-open trading.

NILE management indicated Q1 consumer spending on luxury goods is looking soft, and will likely impact future results.

RBCM has a target price of $55 on NILE. NILE over all option implied volatility of 126 it above its 26-week average of 65 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

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

Vonage (NYSE: VG) is up 4% on a narrowed loss in the most recent quarter.

Applied Material (NASDAQ: AMAT) is up over 5% on an upgrade from Citigroup.

E*Trade (NASDAQ: ETFC) is up over 2% on news of good January results.

Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) is off 24% on bad earnings.

First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) is up 20% on strong earnings.

Stocks may trade differently in the pre-market than they do in the regular session.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

There are stock pull-backs, and then there are stock pull-backs that signal 'opportunity.' Or should one say here just 'sparkles' with opportunity?

Online diamond company Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) is the largest online retailer of certified diamonds and fine jewelry, and part of the reason it attained that status is the company's philosophy: Blue Nile believes choosing the right engagement ring doesn't have to be complicated.

The company's web site is a pillar on which the NILE foundation stands: its structured so that the typical person can navigate carat / cut / clarity / color characteristics of diamonds and ring characteristics with relative ease. A 30-day return policy puts the potential purchaser at ease.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Celera Genomics, Plantronics and Nymex were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• JMP Securities upgraded Celera Group, Applera Corp. (NYSE: CRA) to Outperform from Market Perform, as they believe an announcement on the company's evaluation of its tracking stock could come as early as 1Q08, a split of Celera/Applied Biosystems could occur by FY08, and a new finding in a peer-review journal that predicts risk of coronary heart disease and statin benefit within the next six weeks.
  
• Baird raised Plantronics (NYSE: PLT) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation, strength in the Center and Office segment, and negative sentiment on Mobile revenues unwarranted.
  
• Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of NYMEX (NYSE: NMX) to Buy from Hold and raised their target to $160 from $145 to reflect stabilized floor volumes, increased trading of commodities and acquisition potential consensus estimates that are too low. Deutsche named NMX their top exchange idea for 2008.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Citigroup upgraded Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) to Buy from Hold.
  
• Goldman upgraded Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Keefe Bruyette added Assured Guaranty (NYSE: AGO) to its Best Ideas List.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: UQM Technologies, Blue Nile, NPS Pharmaceuticals, Massey Energy and Hartford Financial were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Merriman downgraded shares of UQM Technologies Inc (AMEX: UQM) to Neutral from Buy after Phoenix Motorcars delayed its electric vehicle manufacturing ramp, as they view the company's Phoenix Motorcars relationship as the primary driver for near-term growth.
• Citigroup downgraded shares of Blue Nile Inc (NASDAQ: NILE) to Sell from Hold on valuation as they believe near-term risks outweigh rewards. They see risk to Q3 revenue estimates and their analysis suggests an in-line quarter at best.
• NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: NPSP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Oppenheimer and to Hold from Buy at Jefferies. Oppenheimer lowered shares following disappointing Gattex data; Jefferies believes the P3 GATTEX results in short bowel syndrome make the chances of successful low-dose approval unpredictable.
• Friedman Billings downgraded Massey Energy Company (NYSE: MEE) to Underperform from Market Perform based on valuation, 2008/2009 outlook, spinoff of Patriot Coal appears to be a better investment option, and another blow to mountaintop mining and permit issues.
• JP Morgan removed The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc (NYSE: HIG) from their Focus List; however, they believe the company's fundamental outlook remains positive and expects strong Q3 results.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Morgan Stanley downgraded EV3 Inc (NASDAQ: EVVV) to Underweight from Equal Weight.
• Business Objects SA (NASDAQ: BOBJ) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Roth Capital.
• Goldman downgraded The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc (NASDAQ: NDAQ) to Neutral from Buy.
• Banc of America downgraded The Pepsi Bottling Group Inc (NYSE: PBG) to Neutral from Buy.