MOST NOTEWORTHY: Ericsson, Alcatel-Lucent, General Motors and Anglo American were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) was downgraded to Reduce from Buy at WestLB and to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse following the company's Q3 profit warning.
  
• WestLB downgraded shares of Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) to Reduce from Hold following Ericsson's profit warning, as they believe Alcatel-Lucent's mobile business will face top-line and margin issues.
  
• Bear Stearns downgraded shares of General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) to Underperform from Peer Perform after learning that benefits from the new union contract will be lower than expected in 2008 and 2009. The broker recommends swapping into Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F).
  
• HSBC downgraded shares of Anglo American (NASDAQ: AAUK) to Neutral from Overweight on valuation. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Anglo to Equal Weight from Overweight also on valuation, as they see better value elsewhere in the sector.
  

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Merrill Lynch downgraded Westpac Banking Corporation (NYSE: WBK) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Piper Jaffray.
  
• Citigroup downgraded SRA International (NYSE: SRX) to Hold from Buy.
  
• UBS downgraded THQ Inc (NASDAQ: THQI) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Lehman Brothers downgraded Syngenta (NYSE: SYT) to Equal Weight from Overweight.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Kenexa Corp (KNXA), CACI International (CAI), SI International (SINT), Tyco Electronics (TEL) and YUM! Brands (YUM) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• ThinkEquity started Kenexa Corp (NASDAQ: KNXA) with an Accumulate rating, citing the company's attractive business model that can deliver high-value, high-margin content, but questions the company's plans to compete with best-of-breed vendors.

• Banc of America initiated CACI International (NYSE: CAI) with a Neutral, citing the challenging budget environment and margin trends.

• Banc of America believes shares of SI International (NASDAQ: SINT) offers a compelling risk/reward given the improving civilian funding environment and upside potential from recent M&A activity, and assumed coverage with a Buy rating and $38 target.

• Tyco Electronics (NYSE: TEL) was started with a Hold rating at Deutsche Bank, citing risks to the company's potential turnaround.

• Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) was re-initiated with an Outperform rating at Friedman Billings on valuation and considers any stock price weakness from the increased costs as a buy opportunity.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Banc of America assumed the following Government IT Services companies with Buy ratings: SRA International (NYSE: SRX) and SI International.

• Banc of America assumed the following Government IT Services companies with Neutral ratings: CACI International, MTC Technologies (NASDAQ: MTCT), SAIC (NYSE: SAI), and ManTech International Corp (NASDAQ: MANT).

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Monday February 26

• XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: XMSR) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 10am. Analysts will review XM's overall subscribers, new subscribers, retention rates, average monthly fees, pricing plans, new broadcast content agreements, marketing strategy, operating costs, sector position, and margins. Equally significant, Wall Street will also pay very close attention to management's operational posture moving forward, in light of its proposed merger agreement with Sirius Satellite Radio Inc (NASDAQ: SIRI).

Tuesday February 27

• Sirius Satellite Radio to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 8am. The concerns for Sirius mirror the previously mentioned concerns for XM.

Wednesday February 28

• PDUFA Date for Novartis AG ADS's (NYSE: NVS) Galvus, an innovative oral therapy for people with type 2 diabetes.

Thursday March 1

• Echostar Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: DISH) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 12pm. Analysts will focus on Echostar's success at adding value to its offerings, amid intensifying competition from digital cable and communications companies offering TV services.
• PDUFA date for New River Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: NRPH) and Shire plc ADS's (NASDAQ: SHPGY) Vyvanse, for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder [ADHD].
• PDUFA date for Merck Serono SA ADS's (NYSE: SRA) Serostim, a treatment for AIDs wasting.

Friday March 2

• THQ Inc (NASDAQ: THQI) to hold analyst meeting in San Fransisco, CA.

Here is a look ahead to next week's three day trading week:

Monday January 1

• Markets closed for New Year's Day holiday
• PDUFA date for Amylin Pharmaceutical's (NASDAQ: AMLN) Byetta

Tuesday January 2

• Markets closed in observance of President Ford's death

Wednesday January 3

• Earnings conference calls for AngioDynamics (NASDAQ: ANGO), Landec Corporation (NASDAQ: LNDC) and the Topps Company (NASDAQ: TOPP)
• Sales conference call for American Eagle Outfitters (NASDAQ: AEOS)

Thursday January 4

• Earnings conference calls for Arrow International (NASDAQ: ARRO), Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) and Sonic Corporation (NASDAQ: SONC)
• Sales conference calls for Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF), AnnTaylor Stores (NYSE: ANN) and bebe stores (NASDAQ: BEBE)

Friday January 5

• Shareholder meeting for Serono S.A. (NYSE: SRA)

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Dominion Resources (D), Caremark RX (CMX), Intel (INTC) and CVS Corp (CVS) top today's extensive list of downgrades.

• Dominion Resources, Inc. (NYSE:D) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Deutsche Bank and to Underperform from Hold at Jefferies. Both firms cited the E&P sale that would lead to near-term dilution.
• Caremark Rx, Inc. (NYSE:CMX) was downgraded at Wachovia to Market Perform from Outperform citing the merger with CVS Corp (CVS) valued Caremark RX too low. First Albany and FTN Midwest also downgraded Caremark RX to Neutral, citing the merger with CVS Corp.
• Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) was downgraded at Merrill Lynch to Neutral from Buy, citing weakened demand and increased capacity.
• CVS Corp (NYSE:CVS) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank citing the uncertainties of the Caremark RX (CMX) merger. CVS Corp was also downgraded by William Blair to Market Perform from Outperform.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Morgan Stanley downgraded MasterCard, Inc. (NYSE:MA) to Equal Weight from Overweight.
• Robert W. Baird downgraded SRA Int'l (NYSE:SRX) to Neutral from Outperform based on lower than expected organic revenue near-term, federal agencies to operate under CR beyond mid-November, recruiting retention challenges and valuation.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).