Analyst Upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded EMC (EMC) to buy from hold after channel checks indicated storage demand remains solid. The firm sees potential upside in 2011 from the company's new products and upped its target for shares to $25 from $20.
• BB&T upgraded American Commercial (ACLI) to buy with a $50 target based on pricing leverage and cost reductions.
• Argus upgraded Abercrombie (ANF) to buy with a $52 target based on accelerating comps.
• PerkinElmer (PKI) was upgraded to equal weight from underweight at Barclays.
• Valeant (VRX) was upgraded to market perform from underperform at Wells Fargo with a $26 to $28 valuation range.
• Blackrock (BLK) was upgraded to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: ACLI, ADM, ANF, BLK, BP, COST, EMC, FO, NE, PEET, UNFI ...

Analyst Calls: ACLI, ADM, ANF, BLK, BP, COST, EMC, FO, NE, PEET, UNFI ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Investors and analysts may be wondering whether the market rally is really over, and whether this signals more trouble ahead for the economy. Well, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its next Beige Book report of economic conditions on Wednesday, offering a glimpse of where things stand. The Beige Book report in July suggested that, in some of the 12 Fed districts, the economy appeared to be stabilizing, suggesting that the recession may have reached its bottom, but offering little sign of a recovery. Retail activity remained weak and employment numbers were not good. Yet the minutes of the FOMC August meeting seemed a bit more optimistic about the economy.

In addition to the Beige Book report, the TIPP Economic Optimism Index is scheduled to be released Tuesday, and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index comes out Friday. So by the end of the week, we could have a good gauge of the mood about the U.S. economy.

Continue reading The week in preview: It's Beige Book time again

The week in preview: It's Beige Book time again originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 06 Sep 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"The organic food industry is surprisingly resilient in an economic downturn," explains Benjamin Shepard, contributing editor with Personal Finance.

He adds, "Mainstream retailers and your corner grocer have been embracing the trend, devoting an ever-growing amount of shelf space to organic foods." Here's a trio of favorites.

"What was essentially a nascent industry in 1997 with $3.6 billion in sales has exploded to a behemoth with almost $14 billion in sales in 2006, according to the Organic Trade Association.

"And barring a major economic disaster worse than we've seen thus far, the industry looks set to continue double-digit growth well into the next decade.

"That's not to say there aren't potential troubles ahead as commodity prices continue to soar. Organic farming techniques tend to be more cost intensive--ironically enough--and transport costs continue to swell.

"But so far the industry has been able to pass the bulk of the higher costs onto consumers, and although sales volumes have dropped off and profits are down, those consumers are as dedicated as ever.

Continue reading Kraft, United Natural & Hain Celestial: Organic gains

Kraft, United Natural & Hain Celestial: Organic gains originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Jul 2008 09:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) is up over 5% on news of a new deal with Hyundai Heavy Industries.

Odyssey Marine Exploration (NASDAQ: OMEX) is up 5% on news it has filed in court for rights to salvage a wreck which the company discovered.

Syntax-Brillian (NASDAQ:BRLC) is off 30% on news that it will enter into a new debt agreement.

United Natural Foods (NASDAQ:UNFI) is trading down 24% on poor earnings.

Stocks may trade differently in the pre-market than they do in the regular session.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Pre-market movers (LDK) (OMEX) (BRLC) (UNFI) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 22 Feb 2008 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• The Bank of America initiated Monster Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ:MNST) with a Buy rating and $57 target; they believe the market has underestimated Monster's long-term growth potential and is overly focused on near-term margins.
• Janco started Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI) with a Market Perform rating and $3.80 target, expecting competitor XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:XMSR) to appreciate more than Sirius once investors regain confidence in XM's management and OEM support.

• Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE:TXN) was initiated with a Market Perform rating and $36 target at Piper Jaffray; they believe shares should trade at a slight discount to peers and are particularly cautious regarding near-term share losses and slower-than-expected ramping of WCDMA.
• Pacific Growth initiated Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) with a Buy rating and $50 target, as they expect upcoming catalysts that should include Chinese 3G licenses and share gains in WDCMA chipset market.
• Credit Suisse initiated Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ:GRMN) with a Neutral rating.
• UBS started United Natural Foods Inc. (NASDAQ:UNFI) with a Buy rating and $44 target.

Analyst initiations 12-19-06: Sirius initiated with Market Perform originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 19 Dec 2006 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.