Analyst Upgrades

• Siemens (SI) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• Diamond Offshore (DO) to market perform from underperform at FBR Capital.
• MeadWestvaco (MWV) to conviction buy from neutral at Goldman.
• TD AmeriTrade (AMTD) and Cabot Oil & Gas (COG) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Janus Capital (JNS) to hold from sell at Citigroup.
• Motorola Mobility (MMI) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Frontier Communications (FTR) to neutral from underperform at Macquarie.
• Humana (HUM) to buy from hold at Argus.

United States Oil Fund (USO) was up 1% as WTI Crude futures traded up 2.17% to $91.19 according to Bloomberg. Overall option implied volatility of 28 is below its 26-week average of 32 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Siemens AG (SI) said it is confident of reaching its full-year targets after profits in Q1 advanced on demand for health-care, industrial and energy equipment. Overall option implied volatility of 30 is below its 26-week average of 33 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Options Update is by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Analyst Upgrades

• KeyBanc upgraded Las Vegas Sands (LVS) to hold from underweight based on Singapore performance and a potential revaluation of the yuan.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Seattle Genetics (SGEN) to buy from hold based on the positive SGN-35 HL data. The firm raised its price target to $16 from $12.
• Merriman upgraded Applied Signal (APSG) to buy from neutral with a $28 to $31 valuation range, citing greater confidence in earnings estimates and the company's recent contract wins.
• Siliconware Precision (SPIL) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at Macquarie.
• Pulte Group (PHM) was upgraded to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• Greenbrier (GBX) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Morgan Keegan.

Analyst Upgrades

• Credit Suisse upgraded Netflix (NFLX) to neutral from underperform and raised its price target to $140 from $90. The firm's survey work indicates Netflix's streaming offering is compelling and will continue to grow as it acquires additional streaming content.
• Barclays upgraded Ford (F) to overweight from equal weight, citing the company's earnings power, reduced cost base, expectations for a return to prior peak margins and valuation. The firm raised its target to $16 from $15.
• Merriman upgraded OpenTable (OPEN) to buy from neutral based on increased visibility into international expansion from the toptable.com acquisition and upside from its Spotlight product.
• Siemens (SI) was upgraded to conviction buy from buy at Goldman.
• Medicis (MRX) was upgraded to buy from hold at Jefferies.
• IDEX (IEX) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Baird.

Analyst Upgrades

• FBR Capital upgraded Pioneer Natural (PXD) to outperform from market perform and raised its price target for shares to $85 from $60. The firm upgraded shares on expectations that returns from the company's Spraberry field will increase materially.
• Baird upgraded Acroda Therapeutics (ACOR) to outperform from neutral based on valuation and a new survey that indicates a strong uptake for Ampyra and improvements on the reimbursement front. The firm has a $40 target on the stock.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded Nokia (NOK) to overweight from underweight based on checks that indicate strong orders and less than expected discounting for its upcoming N8 smartphone.
• GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and British American Tobacco (BTI) were upgraded to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Quality Systems (QSII) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at William Blair.
• Siemens (SI) was upgraded to buy from neutral at UBS.

Alcoa (AA) closed at $10.34. AA is expected to report Q2 EPS on July 11. Overall option implied volatility of 45 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting nondirectional movement.

Siemens (SI) closed at $89.69. SI overall option implied volatility of 41 is above its 26-week average of 51, according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

MSCI Emerging Markets Index (EEM) is recently up 48 cents to $38.05 in pre-open trading. EEM overall option implied volatility of 35 is above its 26-week average of 32 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Options Update is by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Analyst Upgrades

• Sterne Agee upgraded Wynn Resorts (WYNN) to buy from neutral and has a $115 price target on the stock. The firm believes Encore Macau will drive further share gains near-term.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded PPL Corp. (PPL) to buy from hold and said the equity offering and the the stipulation reached in the KY utilities' rate cases removes important overhangs. The firm has a $30 price target on the stock.
• UBS upgraded CarMax (KMX) to buy from neutral based on forecasts for higher consumer forecast income and positive used car trends. The firm has a $28 target on the stock.
• Aeropostale (ARO) was upgraded to outperform from underperform at Oppenheimer.
• Cardinal Financial (CFNL) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at Baird.
• Pinnacle West (PNW) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.

Siemens (SI - option chain) shares are rising on news that it has won two major contracts. SI will deliver turbines for gas-fired power plants to Nextera (FPL), a Florida-based utility, and also won a contract for a 500M euro power grid project in the North Sea. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on SI.

SI opened Monday morning at $94.41. So far the stock has hit a low of $93.96 and a high of $95.43. As of 12:05, SI was trading at $94.90 up 4.40 (4.9%). The chart for SI looks bearish, but with a possible trend reversal.

Analyst Upgrades

• FBR Capital upgraded New York Community Bancorp (NYB) to outperform from market perform following the FDIC-assisted acquisition of AmTrust. The firm raised its target price on shares to $16 from $11.
• Oppenheimer upgraded Brocade (BRCD) to outperform from perform to reflect valuation, low investor expectations, and the company's potential to gain market share in IP/Ethernet switching. The firm set a target price of $8.50 on shares.
• Stifel Nicolaus upgraded National Health Investors (NHI) to buy from hold following the announcement that the litigation vs. Care Foundation has been dismissed. The firm has a $37 target on the stock.
• American Express (AXP) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at BofA/Merrill.
• ACE Ltd. (ACE) was upgraded to buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Kohl's (KSS) was raised to outperform from neutral at Baird.

Philips Electronics (PHG) closed at $27.59, close to a 13-month high. Philips will be displaying its diagnostic imaging products at The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2009 Annual Meeting on November 29. December option implied volatility is at 37, below a level of 73 from a year ago and below its 26-week average of 46, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) overall implied volatility at 24; 26-week average is 24.

Siemens (SI) closed at $98.59. Siemens will be displaying its diagnostic imaging products at The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2009 Annual Meeting on November 29. December option implied volatility of 37 is below a level of 70 from a year ago and below its 26-week average of 40, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

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

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) to Outperform from Market Perform to reflect upcoming catalysts and the company's opportunity in subsalt. FBR raised its target on shares to $60 from $50.
• Citigroup upgraded Marvel (NYSE: MVL) to Hold from Sell on expectations the acquisition by Disney (NYSE: DIS) will close. The firm raised its target on shares to $50 from $31.
• JPMorgan upgraded Cubic (NYSE: CUB) to Overweight from Neutral on expectations the company will benefit from the Vix ERG acquisition and increased sales visibility. The firm raised its target on shares to $43 from $38.
• Siemens (NYSE: SI) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Bernstein.
• Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.
• Thompson Creek (NYSE: TC) was upgraded to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer at CIBC.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Cooper Industries (NYSE: CBE) to Buy from Hold on valuation as it believes commercial construction concerns are well known. The firm raised its target on shares to $40 from $37, and coupled the upgrade with a downgrade of Rockwell Automation (NYSE: ROK) to Sell from Hold.
• Credit Suisse upgraded BJ Services (NYSE: BJS) to Neutral from Underperform following its acquisition by Baker Hughes (NYSE: BHI). The firm raised its target to $17.
• Credit Suisse also upgraded Amkor Technology (NASDAQ: AMKR) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $8 from $7. The firm expects Amkor to benefit from near-term strength in the supply chain and the mix shift towards higher value packaging.
• Textron (NYSE: TXT) was upgraded to Conviction Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• Siemens (NYSE: SI) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
• Stanley Works (NYSE: SWK) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Janney Montgomery.

Analyst upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded Warner Chilcott (NASDAQ: WCRX) to Buy from Hold. The firm views Warner Chilcott's acquisition of P&G's (NYSE: PG) pharma business as a positive given its attractive product fit and purchase price.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) to Buy from Source of Funds and raised its target to $550 from $400. Previously, the firm thought Google Street estimates were too high and that low single-digit growth in Q2 and Q3 would cause multiple contraction. They said their thesis played out fundamentally but they were wrong on the stock. Given Q2 has past, the analyst raised estimates above consensus and expects an in-line Q3 and for shares to outperform as the economic cycle turns.
• Bernstein upgraded Diageo (NYSE: DEO) to Outperform from Market Perform and views Diageo's valuation as attractive. The firm expects 2H09 results on August 27 to mark a bottom in weakening top-line trends.
• Costco (NASDAQ: COST) was upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at William Blair.
• Lowe's (NYSE: LOW) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Siemens (NYSE: SI) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.

What's the next bubble? Perhaps it's the global spending on infrastructure.

No doubt, there will be some big-time winners, especially large engineering companies. One example: Siemens AG (NYSE: SI), which is the largest engineering operator in Europe.

Interestingly enough, the company said that – over the next three years – it will win about $21 billion in projects from the stimulus bonanza. Something else, roughly 40% of the projects will involve environmental technologies.

Three light plays to brighten your day (pun intended) and your portfolio -- and all are linked to rapidly-advancing light technology, including LED lights, that will save energy and reduce carbon emissions.

First, I'll reiterate a previous favorite, General Electric (NYSE: GE). I recommended it first on March 2, 2009. Now I'd raise Sell/Stop Loss to $9.25 from my original Sell/Stop Loss: $3.25. The First Call FY2009/FY2010 EPS estimates for GE are 98 cents to 94 cents.