MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• B. Riley upgraded shares of Quiksilver (NYSE: ZQK) to Buy from Neutral on valuation and to reflect the EPS catalyst and debt reduction associated with divesting Rossignol.
  
• Friedman Billings upgraded shares of Omniture (NASDAQ: OMTR) to Outperform from Market Perform following the recent pullback, as they believe the company is in its best competitive position ever, which should drive increasing win rates and help restore pricing power.
  
• Banc of America upgraded shares of Crown Holdings (NYSE: CCK) to Buy from Neutral to reflect the company's international exposure and believes metal packaging companies should be better able to manage input inflation.

• UBS raised AmerisourceBergen (NYSE: ABC) to Neutral from Sell.
  
• Stephens raised its rating on Amedisys (NASDAQ: AMED) to Overweight from Equal Weight.
  
• Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) and JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) were upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

If your idea of the best way to travel involves an Arbor Fish longboard, or a Burton Chopper, then there is an outfit in Everett, Washington that has your basics and all your accessories, too.

Zumiez (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is a mall-based specialty retailer of sports-related apparel and equipment. Apparel offerings carry such brand names as Billabong, Burton, Hurley and Quiksilver, as well as private labels. The equipment includes skateboards, snowboards, boots, bindings, and miscellaneous novelties. Stores cater to young people, between the ages of 12 and 24. The firm operates 266 outlets, in 22 states.

Zumiez pleased investors last week, when it announced Q2 EPS of 11 cents and revenues of $82 million. Analysts had been expecting 8 cents and $79.3 million. Management also guided FY08 EPS to 97-99 cents (97 cent consensus). The news helped pop the shares out of a mid-August "cup" into the late August "handle" of a Cup & Handle formation. The price is now showing signs of completing the pattern with a bullish rise from the right-hand side of the "handle."

Brokers recommend the shares with five "strong buys," four "buys" and four "holds." Analysts see a 29% average annual growth rate, through the next five years. The ZUMZ Sales Growth rate (46.95%), EPS Growth rate (83.33%), Return on Assets (14.03%), Return on Investment (19.61%) and Return on Equity (22.12%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutional investors hold about 91% of the outstanding shares. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded between $20.00 and $48.10. A stop-loss of $39.00 looks good here.

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