Bright and early on Wednesday morning, UBS issued a downgrade on discount retailer Target (NYSE: TGT). The brokerage cut TGT to Neutral from Buy, but kept its price target of $52. UBS attributed the downgrade to valuation and concerns surrounding a change in consumer spending and the impact of said spending on the company's recovery. This downgrade comes after the retailer hired a research firm to look into its reputation -- I guess they should have checked on their reputation with brokerages.

Shares of the retailer are lower this morning thanks to the news, but there is reason to believe the retailer could enjoy a prosperous holiday shopping season. Hear me out, Target offers quality products at a reasonable price, making the retailer a good spot to find great deals. What's more, Target is constantly offering sales and coupons, making the deals even sweeter. These discounts are exactly what people will look for when trying to fill out Santa's list.

A lot of people I talked with during the financial crisis thought that something seemed amiss as brokerages and credit-ratings services were issuing, what I liked to call, "happy thoughts" about the economy even though it sure seemed that we were headed over the falls in a thimble.

Among the upbeat outlooks were the ratings of complex debt securities, which quickly deteriorated and led to billions of dollars of investor losses. According to The Wall Street Journal and former Moody's analyst, Eric Kolchinsky, Moody's gave high ratings to complicated debt security in 2009 with knowledge that it would downgrade assets that backed the securities.

This morning, UBS issued an upgrade to eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) - upping the online auction house to Buy from Neutral. The brokerage believes that the company's comparable sales may be starting to "turn a corner." Backing this belief is recent data from a top vendor and "other channel checks."

The vendor, ChannelAdvisor, reported that its comparable sales increased 4.6% in August. The increase followed a 10% decline in the first quarter and a 5% drop in the second quarter. ChannelAdvisor also reported that upcoming changes should help drive transaction growth. These changes include enhancements to eBay's search function and better dispute resolution tools.

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.

Bright and early Tuesday morning, Credit Suisse issued upgrades to Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and Research in Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM), lifting both of them from Neutral to Outperform. The brokerage cited a recovery at MOT's mobile-phone division along with growing demand for RIMM's BlackBerry as reasons for the upgrades. In addition, Credit Suisse elevated the price targets on both, upping MOT to $9.50 from $7 and RIMM to $95 from $76.

Credit Suisse did not stop there, issuing downgrades to MOT and RIMM competitors QUALCOMM (NASDAQ: QCOM) and Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) from Outperform to Neutral.

Analyst upgrades:

• Pacific Sunwear (NASDAQ: PSUN) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Pali Capital, which cited low expectations, new CEO experience, and compelling risk/reward for the upgrade.
• RBC Capital raised Aruba Networks (NASDAQ: ARUN) to Outperform from Sector Perform, based on increased visibility into wireless networking products.
• J. Crew (NYSE: JCG) was upgraded to Hold from Underperform by Needham after the company reported better-than-expected Q2 report and guidance.
• RBC Capital raised Lundin Mining (NYSE: LMC) to Outperform from Sector Perform, citing updated copper forecasts and valuation.
• Netezza (NYSE: NZ) was upgraded to Buy from Accumulate by ThinkEquity.
• Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE: SNY) was raised to Overweight from Neutral by JPMorgan.
• Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral by Goldman.
• Network Engines (NASDAQ: NENG) was raised to Buy from Hold by Cantor.

Analyst upgrades:

• Natixis expects Alcatel-Lucent's (NYSE: ALU) results to improve in 2H09, driven by the CDMA segment and completion of Lucent integration. Shares were upgraded to Buy from Reduce.
• RBC Capital upgraded Canadian Pacific (NYSE: CP) to Outperform from Sector Perform and raised its target to $67 from $49. The firm expects a return to "normalized" operating environment driven by Potash and MetCoal.
• Credit Suisse upgraded Affiliated Managers Group (NYSE: AMG) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $69 from $64. The firm cites valuation, potential upside from 2H09 deals, and expectations for positive 2H09 flows for the upgrade.
• Kennametal (NYSE: KMT) coverage was assumed with a Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Cardinal Financial (NASDAQ: CFNL) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• General Maritime (NYSE: GMR) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at FBR Capital.

This morning, Rochdale upgraded Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), raising the retail giant to Buy from Hold. The brokerage also upped its price target on the retailer to $65 per share from $55. Rochdale stated that the retailer has a "favorable blend of defensive qualities," including consumers trading down, the company's focus on low costs, cyclical upside from more discretionary general merchandise and international exposure.

Fundamentally, WMT is in a good position thanks to its combination of merchandise and price. However, the company's technical performance suggests that Rochdale may be a little late to the dance. On a weekly basis, WMT has set a descending pattern of lower highs dating back to late last year. This pattern suggests technical weakness, and we could see the pattern continue this week. If WMT can not capitalize on last week's momentum, the shares could confirm this pattern.

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded CapitalSource (NYSE: CSE) to Outperform from Market Perform on valuation as it sees an attractive risk/reward at current levels. The firm raised its target on shares to $5 from $3.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded The Knot (NASDAQ: KNOT) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q2 results to reflect stable national advertising and a better bottom-line outlook. The firm raised its target on shares to $11 from $8.50.
• Baird upgraded Obagi Medical (NASDAQ: OMPI) to Outperform from Neutral and raised its target to $10 from $7 following the strong Q2 report. The firm believes business bottomed in Q1 and the outlook is improving.
• IPC The Hospitalist Co. (NASDAQ: IPCM) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.
• King Pharma (NYSE: KG) was upgraded at BofA/Merrill to Buy from Hold.
• Infinera (NASDAQ: INFN) was upgraded to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded American Express (NYSE: AXP) to Buy from Hold and added the stock to its Top Picks Live list following the company's investor day. Citi believes American Express' credit trends are improving and raised its price target on shares to $36 from $28.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Gardner Denver (NYSE: GDI) to Buy from Neutral after meeting with management to reflect expectations for EPS growth in 2010 and valuation. The firm has a $38 target on the stock.
• BofA/Merrill upgraded Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) to Buy from Underperform and raised its target to $87 from $49 based on strong copper fundamentals.
• Cbeyond (NASDAQ: CBEY) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.
• Gibraltar Industries (NASDAQ: ROCK) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• Fortress (NYSE: FIG) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette.

Analyst upgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) to Market Perform from Underperform following the company's in-line quarter and extended buyback. The firm raised its target price on shares to $103 from $98.
• Merriman upgraded Cree (NASDAQ: CREE) to Buy from Neutral after transitioning coverage of the stock as it believes HB-LED chips are gaining momentum and that the company can top its recently raised guidance.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded Glatfelter (NYSE: GLT) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q2 results due to falling net debt levels and valuation. The firm raised its target on shares to $14 from $8.
• Corporate Executive Board (NASDAQ: EXBD) was upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Baird.
• Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• Unit Corp. (NYSE: UNT) was upgraded to Buy from Sell at Jesup & Lamont.

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded Talbots (NYSE: TLB) to Outperform from Market Perform as it believes the company's inventory and SG&A control should help earnings and the stock's risk/reward is compelling at current levels. The firm raised its target on shares to $7 from $5.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Human Genome (NASDAQ: HGSI) to Buy from Accumulate to reflect higher assumptions for the company's Lupus treatment Benlysta. The firm raised its target on shares to $26 from $18.
• KeyBanc upgraded Parkway Properties (NYSE: PKY) to Buy from Hold based on valuation, improving fundamentals, and stable capital position. The firm has a $17 target on the stock.
• HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.
• BioScrip (NASDAQ: BIOS) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Analyst upgrades:

• UBS upgraded Wendy's/Arby's (NYSE: WEN) to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $5.50 from $4.90 based on improving sales momentum at Wendy's and potential improvements at Arby's.
• Goldman upgraded 3M (NYSE: MMM) to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $85 from $78. The firm cites 3M's short-cycle exposure and relative valuation for the upgrade.
• Thomas Weisel upgraded JCPenney (NYSE: JCP) to Market Weight from Underweight citing comfort in the company's intermediate-term recovery potential.
• UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at ING Group.
• Gap (NYSE: GPS) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
• Alliance Healthcare (NYSE: AIQ) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Analyst upgrades:

• Morgan Keegan upgraded Motorola (NYSE: MOT) to Outperform from Market Perform due to the increased visibility of Android-based launches, as well as the stock's valuation.
• OfficeMax (NYSE: OMX) was upgraded to Buy from Hold by Citigroup, which cited the company's stabilizing sales trend, accelerating share gains, and valuation.
• Kaufman Bros. upgraded iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT) to Buy from Hold on valuation.
• Cancaccord upgraded Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP) to Buy from Hold citing the turnaround in the aluminum business and its exposure to copper.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Smith & Nephew (NYSE: SNN) to Market Perform from Underperform.
• BT Group (NYSE: BT) was upgraded to Neutral from Reduce by Nomura.
• Societe Generale raised L'Oreal (OTC: LRLCY) to Buy from Sell.
• Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) was upgraded to Buy from Hold by Sandler O'Neill.