• Oppenheimer upgraded AmerisourceBergen (NYSE:ABC) to Outperform from Perform on the company's strong branded drug price inflation, potential for greater than expected buybacks, and their belief that prescription volume growth will stabilize after Q1. The firm raised their target to $45 from $36.
  
• Baird upgraded Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation following reaffirmed guidance.
  
• Goldman removed shares of Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) from its Conviction Sell List and upgraded it to Neutral from Sell based on valuation.
• Teppco Partners (NYSE:TPP) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
  
• Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) was raised to Buy from Hold at Canaccord.
  
• Coca Cola Femsa (NYSE: KOF)) was upgraded at Morgan Stanley to Overweight from Equal Weight.

• RBC Capital downgraded Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares to Underperform from Sector Perform and lowered their target to $70 from $125 following the announcement that CEO Steve Jobs is taking a medical leave of absence. The analyst expects shares to be pressured by reduced earnings growth expectations and near-term leadership uncertainty.
  
• Barclays downgraded Motorola (NYSE:MOT) to Equal Weight from Overweight as they do not expect handset recovery for at least 6 to 9 months.
  
• Banc of America/Merrill downgraded Shire (NASDAQ:SHPGY) to Underperform from Buy based on earnings risk from the upcoming generic launch of Adderall XR.
• Royal Caribbean (NYSE:RCL) was added to Goldman's Conviction Sell List.
  
• Starent Networks (NASDAQ:STAR) and Ceragon Networks (NASDAQ:CRNT) were downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.
  
• Casella Waste (NASDAQ:CWST) was lowered at JP Morgan to Neutral from Overweight.

• Citigroup initiated Cliffs Natural (NYSE:CLF) with a Buy rating and $43 target. The firm believes the company's multi-tier North American contract sales arrangements should allow it weather the volatility in the spot and seaborne markets and the firm expects volumes to improve in Q2.
  
• ING started Arcelor Mittal (NYSE:MT) with a Sell rating and believes the economic slowdown will have a greater than expected impact on the steel industry.
  
• Friedman Billings believes weakness in M&T Bank's (NYSE:MTB) regional economy could hinder the company's growth prospects and the firm is concerned about the bank's concentration in commercial and industrial loans. The firm has an Underperform rating and $30 target on the stock.
• S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at Keefe Bruyette.
  
• RBC Capital initiated Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) with a Sector Perform rating and $61 target.

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AAPL, ABX, MOT, RL, CLF originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Jan 2009 11:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• CIBC upgraded Sunlife Financial (NYSE:SLF) to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer.
  ProLogis (NYSE:PLD) was raised to Outperform from Underperform at Wachovia.

• Friedman Billings downgraded shares of Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) to Market Perform from Outperform and lowered their target to $13 from $48 to reflect their lower uranium price outlook.
  
• B. Riley downgraded S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) to Neutral from Buy on valuation and asset quality concerns.
  
• Gabelli downgraded KV Pharmaceutical (NYSE:KV.A) to Hold from Buy after the company said it was indefinitely suspending distribution of all tablet products due to manufacturing and quality assurance concerns.
  
• AMAG Pharma (NASDAQ:AMAG) was cut to Underperform from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

Analyst upgrades and downgrades originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
  
• Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Barclays.
• AutoZone (NYSE: AZO) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.
• B. Riley upgraded S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ: STBA) to Buy from Neutral and lowered its target to $35 from $38 on valuation, as they believe the sell-off post-Q3 results is overdone.
  
• Jefferies upgraded GSI Commerce (NASDAQ: GSIC) to Buy from Hold on valuation after Q4 revenue guidance was reset lower. The firm lowered their target to $13 from $18.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded shares of DHT Maritime (NYSE: DHT) and General Maritime (NYSE: GMR) to Overweight from Neutral on the company's valuation and dividend stability.

• HSBC cut Prudential (NYSE: PUK) to Neutral from Overweight as they believe capital has eroded and debt refinancing is increasingly difficult.
  
• Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman.
  
• Logitech (NASDAQ: LOGI) was lowered to Hold from Buy at Citigroup and to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Continue reading Analyst calls: WFMI, ADM, AZO, PUK, FCX, LOGI, TTWO, URBN, AEO ...

Analyst calls: WFMI, ADM, AZO, PUK, FCX, LOGI, TTWO, URBN, AEO ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 23 Oct 2008 11:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.