MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Jefferies initiated shares of Melco PBL Entertainment (NASDAQ: MPEL) with a Buy rating and $21 target, as they believe the possibility of A-Max, a VIP junket consolidator, moving up to 10 junkets to the Crown Casino could lead to short-term gains and notes that MPEL is the only Macau pure play in the U.S. stock market.
  
• Jefferies also started shares of Helen of Troy (NASDAQ: HELE) with a Hold rating and $21 target, as they sees risks to near-term EPS from soft consumer demand and gross margin pressures.
  
• Credit Suisse expects LHC Group's (NASDAQ: LHCG) rural-focused strategy and joint venture partnerships to drive organic growth and started shares off with an Outperform rating and $26 target.
  
• Oriental Financial Group (NYSE: OFG) was initiated at B. Riley with a Neutral rating and $12.50 target. The firm does not expect significant multiple expansion from current levels given the slow Puerto Rican economy.

• JP Morgan initiated Eagle Rock Energy (NASDAQ: EROC), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP), MarkWest Energy Partners (NYSE: MWE) and Plains All American Pipeline (NYSE: PAA) with Neutral ratings.
  
• Bernstein initiated Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S), AT&T (NYSE: T) and Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) with Market Perform ratings and targets of $21, $47 and $44, respectively.

Analyst initiations: MPEL, HELE, LHCG and OFG originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 18 Oct 2007 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Rochdale upgraded shares of Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) to Buy from Hold citing improved outlook for margins and ROIC.
• CIBC World Markets resumed coverage and upgraded shares of Magna International (NYSE: MGA) to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer as they believe higher multiples are warranted due to the company's improving earnings power and cash flow generation.
  
• Oppenheimer upgraded shares of EchoStar Communications (NASDAQ: DISH) to Buy from Neutral as they believe recent events add $4-$6 per share to their valuation analysis.
  
• Westell Technologies (NASDAQ: WSTL) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird. The firm believes Westell is taking the right steps to improve its market position and financial performance.
  
• Credit Suisse upgraded SiRF Technology Holdings (NASDAQ: SIRF) to Outperform from Neutral, expecting the stock to benefit from a strong holiday season at electronic retailers.

• Goldman upgraded Campbell Soup Company (NYSE: CPB) to Neutral from Sell and Emerson Electric (NYSE: EMR) to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Oriental Financial Group (NYSE: OFG) to Outperform from Market Perform.
  
• Prudential plc (NYSE: PUK) was raised to Outperform from Peer Perform.
  
• Wachovia upgraded Kindred Healthcare Inc (NYSE: KND) to Market Perform from Underperform.

Analyst upgrades: WMT, MGA, DISH, WSTL and SIRF originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 Sep 2007 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.