Analyst Upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Viacom (VIA) to buy from hold due to valuation and expectations that share buybacks will resume this year. The firm raised its price target on shares to $37 from $28.
• Canadian Natural (CNQ) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse. The firm upgraded shares based on valuation and the outlook for heavy crude.
• UBS upgraded Key Energy (KEG) to buy from neutral, citing increased E&P well spending, a possible shorter term rally in gas activity and improved utilization. Target raised to $12.50 from $9.50.
• Shire (SHPGY) was raised to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
• PNC Financial (PNC) was upgraded at Bernstein to outperform from market perform.
• Pacer International (PACR) was upgraded to buy from hold at BB&T.

A trio of emerging growth advisors see large potential gains from the "smallest" of ideas – nanotechnology. This broad field involves the study and manipulation of matter at an atomic level.

In The Forbes/Wolfe Emerging Tech Report, Josh Wolfe says, "One way for individual investors to gain exposure to nanotech is to invest in publicly traded investment firms making private VC-like investments such as Harris & Harris (NASDAQ: TINY) and Arrowhead Research (NASDAQ: ARWR)."

Wolfe explains, "Arrowhead and Harris & Harris have both grown about 46% annually since 2002 and both market caps are around $250 million. Arrowhead tends to invest in really early stage companies and TINY tends to invest in syndicates of other top venture capital funds."

The advisor continues, "TINY offers a neat way to slip into its private industry deals. I know these guys first hand and the kinds of bets they're making are heavily skewed to the upside. They might lose 100% of any investment on the downside - but they're swinging for 500% or more on the upside."

The Ultra-Mobile PC is so ... last week. Microsoft is heading even slimmer (and, more importantly: cheaper) with plans for a tiny computer code-named the Haiku -- about the size of a paperback book.

The Ultra-Mobile started out with the code name Origami (does Origami sound bigger than a Haiku to you? What a strange mix of Japanese metaphors) and, when it was finally released, many industry watchers thought the Haiku was history. Robert Scoble made a point of complaining about the $1000+ pricetag.

With a price of $500-$700, the Haiku eerily fits right in to Scoble's strategy (either he's just smart about these things, or someone in Microsoft is paying keen attention to his criticisms). Via Technologies will provide assistance on the project and it should be available in the next few years. The question is: where does the useful vs. cool tradeoff take place? Is it a pricepoint ($500 seemed to be Scoble's argument, where coolness could outweigh utility), or a functionality? Does it require billions of dollars of customer education, or will the market eventually catch up to the technology? Investors seem to be saying no, as Microsoft's stock goes ever-lower. I think the cool factor -- at MSFT's current bargain-basement price -- is worth betting on.

[Photo Francis]