Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded shares of Air Products & Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE: APD) to Buy from Hold and raised its target to $79 from $63 on valuation as they believe the stock is oversold at current levels and that the company is well positioned to outperform in a slowing demand environment.
  
• Goldman upgraded the U.S. Insurance Brokers sector to Attractive from Cautious and upgraded AON Corporation (NYSE: AOC) and Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE: MMC) to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Covanta Holding Corporation (NYSE: CVA) was upgraded to Outperform from Perform at Oppenheimer. The firm recommends buying shares because they believe that its business model is defensive and its long-term contracts provide stability.
• First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform at Friedman Billings.
  
• Baird upgraded IMS Health, Inc. (NYSE: RX) to Outperform from Neutral.
  
• The Progressive Corporation (NYSE: PGR) was lifted to Neutral from Sell at UBS.

Analyst downgrades:

When businesses grow beyond a certain size, they can find that disparate hardware and software systems slow the implementation of new procedures and impede growth. There is an company in Bedford, Massachusetts, that helps firms develop business applications that overcome those problems.

Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS) provides programs designed to simplify and accelerate the development, deployment, integration and management of business software applications. The firm's various product lines help developers detect and act on patterns in high velocity data streams; achieve standards-based mainframe integration; connect applications running on various platforms; and integrate data for distributed applications. Customers include Home Depot (NYSE: HD), Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM) and the U.S. Army.

When businesses grow beyond a certain size, they can find that disparate hardware and software systems slow the implementation of new procedures and impede growth. There is an outfit in Bedford, Massachusetts that helps firms develop business applications that overcome those problems.

Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS) provides programs designed to simplify and accelerate the development, deployment, integration and management of business software applications. The firm's various product lines help developers detect and act on patterns in high velocity data streams; achieve standards-based mainframe integration; connect applications running on various platforms; and integrate data for distributed applications. Customers include DaimlerChrysler (NYSE: DCX), The Home Depot (NYSE: HD) and Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM). Competitors include Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL).

The company pleased investors last week, when it announced Q2 EPS of 45 cents and revenues of $120 million. Analysts had been expecting 41 cents and $116.3 million. Management also guided Q3 EPS to 42-44 cents (43 cent consensus), Q3 revenues to $118-$120 million ($117.90M consensus), FY07 EPS to $1.72-$1.75 ($1.72 consensus) and FY07 revenues to $475-$485 million ($477.32M consensus). The news kept PRGS shares cycling through a positive 14-week trading channel. The price is currently consolidating near the base of that channel, where oversold CCI, Stochastic and MACD technical parameters suggest the potential for a rise back toward the top.

Brokers recommend the issue with two "strong buys," three "buys" and one "hold." Analysts see an18% average annual growth rate through the next five years. The PRGS Price to Sales ratio (2.75), Price to Book ratio (2.74) and Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (24.59) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages.

Institutions hold about 95% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 600 SmallCap Index. Over the past 52-weeks, it has traded between $21.33 and $34.45. A stop-loss of $28 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.