If you've been watching earnings this past week, or if you read last week's Week in Preview, then this coming week may leave you feeling a bit like Bill Murray in Groundhog's Day. That is, again analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect earnings declines to be more frequent and deeper than earnings gains.

Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT), Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW), Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC), IAC Interactivecorp (NASDAQ: IACI), Moody's Corp. (NYSE: MCO), Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN), Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN), Diebold Inc. (NYSE: DBD), Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC), United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL), ITT Corp. (NYSE: ITT), and Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) are scheduled to report quarterly results this week, and they're all expected to report double-digit declines in earnings.

But again this week, let's take a look who Wall Street feels may have done well in the past quarter.

Elizabeth Arden's (NASDAQ: RDEN) stock has been shellacked in the last couple of days, continuing a decline that began shortly after it reached a 52-week high of $21.79 in September 2008. RDEN has reached a nine-year low in price at $5.95.

The recent action in the stock should come as no surprise. With retail sales continuing to sour and mall traffic becoming more like Sunday services attendance on a beautiful summer day, it could hardly come as news that Elizabeth Arden would issue a negative earnings alert ahead of the company's second-quarter release of financial results scheduled for Friday.

Cosmetics and fragrances are some of the most discretionary of purchases with the widest range of price points. Consumers have the option of purchasing a less expensive brand or delaying the purchase until a better time. As a result, cosmetic products have reached a historically peak inventory level.

For Elizabeth Arden, those inventory numbers are further evidence of the earnings stress facing the company.

Analyst upgrades:

• Axys Tech (NASDAQ: AXYS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Morgan Joseph based on valuation.
  
• Elizabeth Arden (NASDAQ: RDEN) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Wedbush on valuation and the success of the company's Viva La Juicy launch.

Analyst downgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette downgraded Greenhill & Co. (NYSE: GHL) and Evercore Partners (NYSE: EVR) to Market Perform from Outperform on valuation and lowered its estimates to reflect slower than initially expected M&A advisory transactions. Greenhill's target was lowered to $66 from $72 and Evercore's was cut to $14.50 from $16.
  
• Collins Stewart downgraded shares of Thermage (NASDAQ: THRM) to Hold from Buy following the Reliant acquisition to reflect integration and balance sheet concerns.

Analyst initiations:

• Roth Capital views American Oriental (NYSE: AOB) as a cash-rich, multi-faceted pharmaceutical company that is well equipped to handle unforeseen changes in China's Health care market. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $10 target.
  
• Jesup & Lamont believes Bristow Group (NYSE: BRS) is well positioned in current downturn as the majority of its business is in production platforms and drilling rigs. The firm started shares with a Buy rating and $37 target.
  
• Barrington initiated BWAY Holding (NYSE: BWY) with an Outperform rating and $9 target. The firm believes the company is an early cycle business that should benefit from cost reduction activity.
• Grand Canyon (NASDAQ: LOPE) was assumed with a Buy rating and $21 target at Piper Jaffray.

Even with the stimulus checks, retail sales numbers for June and July have been nothing to cheer about. And this coming week should provide another look at how things have been shaping up in the apparel and accessories arena. A number of companies are scheduled to release quarterly numbers, from upscale retailer Nordstrom to the parent of discounter TJ Maxx, from hipster Urban Outfitters to global giant Wal-Mart. Here's a look at what Wall Street is anticipating.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect the following to report strong earnings growth when compared to the same period of the previous year.

• Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN): $0.30 EPS (+36.7%) on revenue of $448.5 million (+28.7%)
• Estée Lauder Cos. Inc. (NYSE: EL): $0.56 EPS (+19.6%) on revenue of $1.9 billion (+9.4%)
• TJX Cos. Inc. (NYSE: TJX): $0.46 EPS (+17.4%) on revenue of $4.6 billion (+6.8%)
• Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL): $0.25 EPS (+16%) on revenue of $346.8 million (+13.2%)
• Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT): $0.84 EPS (+14.3%) on revenue of $101.7 billion (+9.3%)
• Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN): $0.22 EPS (+9.1%) on revenue of $237.6 million (-2.1/%)
• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF): $0.93 EPS (+5.4%) on revenue of $872 million (+8.4%)

MOST NOTEWORTHY: S1 Corp, CME Group and Elizabeth Arden were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Stephens upgraded shares of S1 Corp (NASDAQ: SONE) to Overweight from Equal Weight after meeting with management to reflect their increased confidence in the company's ability to execute. The firm maintains a $9 target on the stock.
  
• Citigroup upgraded shares of CME Group (NYSE: CME) to Buy from Hold as they find the risk/reward attractive with volumes picking up and consensus estimates at more rational levels. The firm maintains a $485 target.
  
• Oppenheimer raised Elizabeth Arden (NASDAQ: RDEN) to Outperform from Perform on valuation, as they believe the current share price does not adequately reflect potential earnings accretion from the company's licensing agreement with Liz Claiborne (NYSE: LIZ) or restructuring savings.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Double Hull Tankers (NYSE: DHT) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.
  
• Hovnanian (NYSE: HOV) was upgraded at UBS to Neutral from UBS.
  
• BMO Capital upgraded Xyratex (NASDAQ: XRTX) to Outperform from Market Perform.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Nova BioScience, Saba Software and Darling were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Jefferies initiated Nova BioSource Fuels (NYSE: NBF) with a Buy rating and $3.75 target, and finds the risk/reward attractive for biofuels investors as the company has more than 100M gallons of biodiesel capacity slated to come onstream by 2009.
  
• B. Riley expects Saba Software's (NASDAQ: SABA) renewed focus on profitability to drive substantial EPS and free cash flow expansion in FY09. The firm started shares with a Buy rating and $6 target.
  
• Stephens believes Darling International (NYSE: DAR) shares offer a solid commodity cycle and an attractive renewable fuels opportunity and initiated shares with an Overweight rating and $17 target..

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Elizabeth Arden (NASDAQ: RDEN) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at Wachovia.
  
• Goldman initiated Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: NUAN) with a Neutral rating and $20 target.
  
• Morgan Stanley initiated ARM Holdings (NASDAQ: ARMHY) with an Equal Weight rating.

The earnings crunch continues, and here are a few of the highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) posted its biggest quarterly loss since its creation in 2006.
• Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) missed earnings estimates despite revenue up 50%.
• Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) fourth-quarter profit soared on strong sales of Avonex and Tysabri.
• Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) reported record profits due to surging oil prices.
• CNET Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: CNET) revenue rose but the forecast was not encouraging.
• Data Domain Inc. (NASDAQ: DDUP) third-quarter revenues spiked due to aggressive overseas expansion.
• Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN) benefitted from overseas growth, which offset weak holiday sales.
• GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) warned that 2008 earnings would be affected by competition from generics.
• Harris Corp. (NYSE: HRS) beat estimates and raised its guidance.
• Micros Systems (NASDAQ: MCRS) beat expectations and offered guidance in line with estimates.
• News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) fell short of earnings expectations despite strength in MySpace and Fox News.
• PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP) results met estimates and it announced further share buybacks.
• Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) beat estimates and raised its guidance.
• SiRF Technology Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRF) missed expectations due to a seasonal decline.
• Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) expects to report its seventh straight quarterly revenue decline.
• Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) attributed solid earnings to growth in China, Russia, emerging markets.
• Wendy's International Inc. (NYSE: WEN) missed earnings estimates, despite beating revenue forecast.
• Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) posted results just ahead of Wall Street estimates.
• Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) posted solid results on overseas growth and share buybacks.

Women of a certain age and socio-economic demographic know Elizabeth Arden Inc. (NASDAQ: RDEN) as a purveyor of prestige beauty products and luxurious day spas. Fortunately for the company, many of those women live outside the U.S. and have yet to be affected by the slowdown in consumer spending. International growth for the company increased 20%, while net sales in the U.S., including the December holiday pampering season, declined 0.5% with weak holiday sales at upscale department stores.

Boosted by international sales, net income increased $8.9 million to $33.8 million, or $1.15 per share. Despite the soft holiday quarter reported January 31, the company is sticking with its previous guidance of diluted EPS $1.65-1.75, up $0.29-0.39 over FY2007. Net sales are forecast to increase in the low single digits -- not the most dramatic forecast.

Elizabeth Arden is tightening its supply chain and increasing the sale of higher profit margin products in its international markets. The company will introduce new fragrance brands in 2008, including the fragrance M by Mariah Carey to appeal to younger customers. Investors do not seem to be much impressed with these new initiatives. The stock has dropped almost 6% over the weekend.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Business Objects, Cognos and Cooper Companies were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Deutsche Bank downgraded Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) and PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) to Hold from Buy on valuation, as they believe shares reflect prospects for growth.
  
• Business Objects (NASDAQ: BOBJ) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS following the acquisition by SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) and to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, as the firm finds the acquisition price fair and does not expect a counter-bid. Soleil believes the SAP offer is reflected in the stock price, and downgraded Business Objects to Hold from Buy.
  
• Roth Capital downgraded shares of Cognos (NASDAQ: COGN) to Hold from Buy based on recent share appreciation as shares capture a vast majority of a potential takeover bid; Goldman downgraded shares to Neutral from Buy and Jefferies downgraded shares to Hold from Buy on valuation.
  
• JP Morgan lowered shares of Cooper Companies (NYSE: COO) to Underweight from Neutral. The firm believes Street estimates are too high given a negative mix shift in the company's contact lens business, which could lead to a FY08 EPS shortfall.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Goldman downgraded JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Elizabeth Arden (NASDAQ: RDEN) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at SunTrust.
  
• UBS downgraded Healthcare REITs to Market Weight from Overweight. UBS downgraded Health Care REIT (NYSE: HCN) and Ventas (NYSE: VTR) to Neutral from Buy and Omega Healthcare (NYSE: OHI) to Sell from Neutral.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal's (subscription required) "Heard on the Street" column focused on Credit Suisse Group's (NYSE: CS) new CEO, Brady Dougan, saying the company chose him to hold a steady course, avoiding periods of high revenues followed by crashes.
  
• Barron's Online's (subscription required) "Weekday Trader" column wrote that Elizabeth Arden Inc (NASDAQ: RDEN) trades at a discount to its industry and the broader market, and looks enticing at current levels.

OTHER PAPERS:

• BusinessWeek's "Inside Wall Street" column reported that AMR Corporation (NYSE: AMR), the parent of American Airlines, is a buyout target of a group that includes the Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS).
• The New York Times reported that Congress has reintroduced legislation to allow the federal government to further regulate the tobacco industry by cracking down on marketing aimed at young people.
• The New York Times also reported that Microsoft Corporation's (NASDAQ: MSFT) CEO Steve Ballmer said Wall Street analysts are being too optimistic about sales of Windows Vista.
• According to the Red Herring, Google Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) has acquired Adscape for $23 million.