MOST NOTEWORTHY: ExxonMobil, Susquehanna and BJ's Wholesale were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Bernstein upgraded shares of ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) to Outperform from Market Perform to reflect the company's best of industry returns and high credit rating, which they feel makes for a safe investment in the current environment.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of Susquehanna (NASDAQ: SUSQ) to Market Perform from Underperform on valuation and believes the company is unlikely to have to raise capital.
  
• JP Morgan raised BJ's Wholesale (NYSE: BJ) to Overweight from Neutral citing improvement in the company's ability to convert free trial customers to paid members and strong June sales, which could result in EPS upside for Q2-Q4.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• J.M. Smucker (NYSE: SJM) was lifted to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank.
  
• France Telecom (NYSE: FTE) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at HSBC.
  
• Baird raised Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB) to Outperform from Neutral.

Citi Investment Research maintained its "hold" rating on Biogen Idec (NASDAQ:BIIB) saying the firm "is poised to gain from higher prices for multiple sclerosis drugs," according to the AP.

Merrill Lynch downgraded GM (NYSE:GM) to "underperform" from "buy", according to Briefing.com. Bernstein upgraded Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) to "outperform" from "market perform", the news service also reported.

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

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says both oil futures and equity futures can move these hot issues.

Will the futures pull down the oil and gas stocks today? No, I don't mean the oil futures, I mean the equity futur

Last week when oil exploded, we caught two days of trading that dropped the stocks hard. We caught a bit of a bid in the nat gases like Chesapeake (NYSE:CHK) and Devon (NYSE:DVN) but at the end of the day, but the stocks were truly overwhelmed by the simple fact that they are in the indices.

This pattern has really held down the integrateds: last week Conoco (NYSE:COP) should have exploded, but it couldn't because it is such a big part of the S&P. Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Exxon (NYSE: XOM) are no different.

The natural gas stocks are not as big a factor, but they can be rocked down without a problem.

I am not saying to avoid looking at the oil futures. They can control the stocks. I am saying that the equity futures tide can take down anything, even when the oil futures spike hard.

Things just keep looking brighter for Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM). After reporting the highest profits ever posted by an American company, it is able to look forward to an even more profitable 2008. With crude oil prices steadily creeping upward and renewable energy replacements a distant solution, Exxon can look forward to, once again, rewriting the record books.

As if that wasn't enough, the Supreme Court recently ruled that Exxon's punitive damages in the Valdez case were excessive and dropped them to one fifth of the original ruling. In 1994, the original judgment against Exxon in Baker v. Exxon was $287 million in actual damages and $5 billion in punitive damages. At the time, the punitive damages were equivalent to one year of profit for the oil company. After two subsequent appeals, the judge reset the damages to $4 billion, $4.5 billion, and ultimately to $2.5 billion. On Wednesday, twenty years after the original accident, the Supreme Court ruled that Exxon now owes $507 million. With interest, that would come to approximately $1 billion, but Exxon is expected to appeal the interest.

Don't know where the market is headed? Some people think a full blown crash is possible; some believe this is a good time to buy while others just don't know what to believe. Well, I just don't care and neither should you.

Because if you're like me, you've learned to take everything one high percentage profit trade at a time, whether you're betting on higher or lower prices. That's right, I'm talking about easy individual market inefficiencies like THIS.

As for the markets a whole, it's the same pathetic guessing game it'll always be, filled with plenty of "gurus" with polished-sounding theories where only a few truly brilliant hedge fund managers guess correctly with the rest of us just trying not to pull a Bill Miller (look foolish).

As if this country doesn't have enough to worry about, now Donald Trump says that oil companies such as BP (NYSE: BP), Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), and Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) are ripping us off. According to a story from CNBC, Trump is calling for punitive sanctions against oil companies, citing their historic profit levels.

While calling himself a "great capitalist" and stating that it is against his nature to seek punitive sanctions against companies that are reaping big profits, Donald Trump indicated that it is his opinion that oil companies have been ripping off the world for quite some time. In a statement aired by CNBC, Trump said, "I can see doing something against the oil companies."

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says these stocks rise because they're doubly blessed. Integrateds fall because they aren't.

So many people have been puzzled why the major integrateds have not moved with the last $30 rally in oil's spot price. The answer?

They can't take advantage of it.

They either didn't believe, and therefore didn't drill, or they have been so in the crosshairs of sovereign lunacy that they haven't been able to. They didn't have the rigs or they judged that the rigs were so expensive that, like 1980, they would look like dopes when oil came back to $40-$50, where many thought it would. (Go back and check even last year's research for price targets, most of which were from the oil companies' themselves.)

Or maybe it didn't matter anyway. So many of the contracts these companies have signed with governments around the world are either being abrogated or just outright confiscated that you have to ask yourself "Who can invest under those scenarios?" Exxon (NYSE: XOM) (Cramer's Take) in Venezuela. Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) (Cramer's Take) and now BP (NYSE: BP) (Cramer's Take) in Russia. You can't continually invest billions and then write it off because the contracts you wrote don't mean anything.

Before the bell: Futures higher ahead of Goldman, PPI, housing data

Klausner Technology Inc, which has sued several companies for damages and future royalties, has settled the suits and reached an agreement Monday with Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), eBay Inc (NASDAQ: EBAY) and AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) to license its "visual voicemail" technology that sends visual alerts to computers or mobile telephones when a user has a voice message.

Meanwhile, Barron's Tech Trader Daily gave several analysts' assessments of the upcoming 3G iPhone: At RBC, they're expecting "massive" shipments of the phones in Q4; this was supported by an analyst at Deutsche Bank. The Goldman analyst didn't stop there but said he expects improvements in the iPod and Mac business segments as well.

And while Apple is increasing its global foot print, so is Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO). The internet portal company said on Tuesday that its mobile search service will be offered by six more telecom companies in Asia, bringing the total to 60 partnerships with companies reaching 600 million subscribers. A Yahoo! exec said he expects the mobile advertising market to rise to $16.2 billion in 2011 up from $1.5 billion in 2006 where Yahoo! is well poised to get a large share.

But all is not rosy at Yahoo! to say the least, as is evident by the massive loss of talent. The recent is Yahoo's EVP Jeff Weiner. Yahoo's president Sue Decker has apparently emailed employees following his resignation. TechCrunch has the surprisingly cheerful and positive email.

Gather around the campfire and let me tell you such scary stories Jason's mask would fail to impress you after that.

Of course, the theme that runs in the background of these scary stories is the state of the economy in the U.S., from the housing slump, inflation and soft labor markets to weak dollar, excessive government spending and increasing national debt load and trade gap.

1. Exxon Mobil and Oil

So scariest of all stories is oil. With prices reaching new records nearly daily, gas prices have also zoomed higher, crossing the $4 a gallon mark. Why, then, is Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) exiting the retail gas business. To be sure, BP (NYSE: BP) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) have either indicated taking such measures or have taken them already. Apparently, gas prices haven't been rising fast enough to keep pace, causing margins to narrow and for cents-earned-per-gallon to be dismal.

One would then think it's a good move by Exxon and the other oil giants to get out of the retail gas business, but I have questions. First, it's alarming that companies with revenues in the hundreds of billions of dollar look for ways to make even more money (even if YTD XOM is down 6.4%). Second, and most important, what could it mean for the consumer? As Doug McIntyre suggested, would the price of gas at the pump increase even more after the sale to private owners than when it was sold under Exxon? Scary indeed.

Exxon (NYSE: XOM) says it cannot make money in the retail gas business. So it is getting out. That raises the question of whether anyone in that part of the industry can make a profit. If not, where will consumers buy gas?

According to The Wall Street Journal, "The retail gasoline business "continues to be a very challenging market with reduced margins, and there is significant competitor growth," says Exxon spokeswoman Premlata Nair." Exxon will sell many of its stations to local owners. Why they will be able to do better than the oil giant is a mystery.

The reason Exxon is making the move is that gas prices have been rising more slowly than oil prices. The inability to move up what the consumer pays kills the stations' margins.

There may be another reason for the move, one that Exxon does not want to talk about. To get the gas station business financially healthy again may require a sharp increase in prices at the pump. Per gallon costs could spike up toward $5. Exxon, already criticized for its huge profits, does not need to add to that the public image of hurting the American consumer.

Why get beat up over a few bucks?

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

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that probes by the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission center on whether American International Group Inc (NYSE: AIG), as well as its financial products division, which has been the source of controversy and profits, intentionally inflated the value of contracts linked to subprime mortgages.
• According to a person familiar with the matter, the Financial Times reported that South Korea's LG Electronics may consider a bid for General Electric Company's (NYSE: GE) appliance business.

OTHER PAPERS:

• Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) will sell the remaining gas stations it owns to gasoline distributors, according to the Associated Press. However, the distributors will continue to pay to use the Exxon and Mobil brand names.
• Xinhua reported that MetLife Inc (NYSE: MET) is seeking permission from Chinese regulators to combine its two ventures in China. The insurer said it believes the move will allow it to compete more effectively in the Chinese market.

Before the bell: Futures edge lower ahead of CPI

Anheuser-Busch Cos. (NYSE: BUD) is holding preliminary talks with rival Grupo Modelo SAB (Corona maker), according to The Wall Street Journal, in an attempt to thwart the $46 billion unsolicited offer it received Belgian brewer InBev SA.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) said it plans to exit its U.S. retail gasoline business over the next few years, shedding the 820 service stations it still owns and operates and another 1,400 company-owned outlets operated by dealers of its branded fuels. Separately it also said it could spend more than $100 million for offshore oil exploration in the Philippines.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) shares are falling as crude oil futures are retreating following yesterday's rally as the dollar is regaining some value. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on XOM.

After hitting a one-year low of $77.55 in January, the stock hit a one-year high of $96.12 in May. This morning, XOM opened at $87.91. So far today the stock has hit a low of $87.14 and a high of $88.43. As of 12:40, XOM is trading at $87.73, down 0.88 (-1.0%). The chart for XOM looks bullish but deteriorating, while S&P gives the stock a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy rating.

For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a July bear-call credit spread above the $95 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 12.4% return in five weeks as long as XOM is below $95 at July expiration. Exxon would have to rise by more than 8% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

XOM hasn't been above $95 for more than a few days in the past year and has shown resistance around $89 recently. This trade could be risky if the price of oil shoot higher, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by resistance XOM might find near $95, where the stock has topped out four times in the past eight months.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer.

DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that may include holdings in companies he writes about. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in XOM.

For the first time Monday I heard John McCain comparing Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter. I had heard this before in other arenas, but not from McCain. I guess that despite these two presidential candidates pledging to the American people to bring change and resist politics as usual, they are both, as usual as one could get.

Obama is being shaped by the pressures of running for office and to believe otherwise is delusional. I suppose one has to have hope but the effects of the campaign are becoming clear. Obama has been painting McCain as an extension of Bush, which is nonsense, and now in a typical tit-for-tat response, McCain is filling the air with Carter references.

Both McCain and Obama are wrong in their assessments of their opponents and they are becoming commoners to resort to the bottom of the barrel campaign techniques used in every campaign for most of our nation's proud history. Obama gave up the high ground too easily and McCain has decided he can sling mud with the best of them.

With the oil prices moving a lot from one day to the next, many of us are left wondering what could be the best solution when investing into an oil stock: buying it or selling it. As Eric Bolling underlines in TheStreet.com, last week was the first time during the past months when selling was seen as the best option.

The reverse side came on Thursday when the European Central Bank President Jean Claude Trichet warned about possible losses. After announcing that nothing changed for the ECB interest rate policy, Trichet said that the ECB might raise their interest rates which are already hitting high levels.

Last week's oil move proved that even oil prices can be manipulated in their rally. It looks like a few comments added at the right time can dramatically change the course of events. Congressman Bart Stupak's comments that he found nothing illegal going on in the oil price rise were enough to make new longs raise the price $5.49 per barrel for the first time ever.