aapl

Eric Buscemi
New York - http://www.theflyonthewall.com

Eric Buscemi, who has worked for the financial news site Theflyonthewall.com for three years, is the head editor of the company's blog. He has a BA and an MA in English from Queens College.

• Lowe's Companies (NYSE: LOW) to report Q1 earnings; conference call scheduled for 9:00am.
• Campbell Soup Company (NYSE: CPB) to report Q3 earnings; Conference call scheduled for 10:00am.

• Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on Global Internet Freedom & Corporate Responsibilty at 10:00am. Appearing: Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO).
• Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) to report Q4 earnings; conference call scheduled for 8:00am.
• Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ) to report Q2 earnings; conference call scheduled for 5:00pm.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JMP Securities started shares of Kohlberg Capital (NASDAQ: KCAP) with an Outperform rating and $14 target. The firm believes Kohlberg Capital's alliance with Kohlberg and Company allows Kohlberg Capital to take advantage of considerable expertise. JMP Securities believes Kohlberg Capital has an attractive risk/reward ratio.
  
• Roth Capital initiated ClickSoftware (NASDAQ: CKSW) with a Hold rating and $3.60 target and expects EPS pressure from the depreciating dollar near-term.
  
• Liberty Property Trust (NYSE: LRY) was initiated with a Hold rating at Stifel, citing lack of internal earnings divers and fair valuation.

• Oppenheimer initiated VisionChina Media (NASDAQ: VISN) with a Perform rating and $25 target.
  
• Merrill assumed MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) with a Neutral rating.
  
• Morgan Stanley started BJ's Wholesale (NYSE: BJ) and Costco (NASDAQ: COST) with Equal Weight ratings.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Goldman downgraded the department store sector to Neutral from Attractive after raising its 2008 oil forecast to $149 from $115, as it believes higher gas prices will impact consumer discretionary spend and sentiment. Goldman downgraded JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) and Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) to Neutral and also removed Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) from its Conviction Buy List.
  
• JMP Securities downgraded SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) to Underperform from Market Perform based on increased competition in NAND, a potential decline in royalty income, valuation, and lack of catalysts from flash-based solid state drives.
  
• CNET Networks (NASDAQ: CNET) was cut to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America following the tender offer from CBS (NYSE: CBS).

• Merrill downgraded Regions Financial (NYSE: RF) to Sell from Neutral.
  
• B. Riley downgraded Exar (NASDAQ: EXAR) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Albermarle (NYSE: ALB) was lowered to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JMP Securities upgraded Fiserv (NASDAQ: FISV) to Outperform from Market Perform citing a reversal of the Bank of America in-house risk, potential re-branding initiatives, and relative pricing stability.
  
• Bear upgraded Arbitron (NYSE: ARB) to Outperform from Peer Perform citing PPM earnings growth potential, strong industry position, defensive nature of shares, and it views the company as an acquisition target.
  
• Lehman raised Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) to Overweight from Equal Weight citing relative valuation and strong U.S. gas exposure.

• Goldman added Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) to its Conviction Buy List.
  
• Morgan Stanley lifted Kroger (NYSE: KR) and British American Tobacco (ASE: BTI) to Overweight from Equal Weight.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Rodman & Renshaw is positive on MedicNova's (NASDAQ:MNOV) two primary products in development: MN-221, for the treatment of severe asthma and MN-166, an oral treatment for multiple sclerosis. The firm is also positive on MNOV's valuation; shares were initiated with an Outperform rating and $9 target.
  
• Transocean (NYSE:RIG) is UBS's Top Pick as they believe it is the primary beneficiary of rising deepwater dayrates. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating and $201 target.
  
• Suntrust initiated Lennox (NYSE:LII) with a Neutral rating and cites near-term visibility.

• Dean Foods (NYSE:DF) was initiated with an Outperform rating and $29 target.
  
• Goldman started Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH) with a Neutral rating and $92 target.
  
• UBS assumed Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ:HERO) and Pride International (NYSE:PDE) with Neutral ratings and targets of $35 and $49, respectively.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Merrill Lynch downgraded J. Sainsbury (Other OTC:JSAIY) to Sell from Neutral following the company's quarterly results; Deutsche Bank downgraded shares to Sell from Hold as they believe the company's results show it has lost momentum.
  
• ThinkPanmure downgraded Orthofix (NASDAQ:OFIX) to Source of Funds from Accumulate citing the loss of Osteocel, which will impact growth.
  
• Wachovia cut Salary.com (NASDAQ:SLRY) to Market Perform from Outperform citing concerns that FY09 will be a challenging given significant increases in investment for sales and marketing.

• UBS cut Knight Transportation (NYSE:KNX) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• HSBC downgraded StatoilHydro (NYSE:STO) to Neutral from Overweight.
  
• Merrill lowered National Semi (NYSE:NSM) to Neutral from Buy.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Merriman upgraded shares of Syneron Medical (NASDAQ:ELOS) to Buy from Neutral following the Q1 results to reflect the introduction of LipoLite and the company's global distribution channel. They believe shares can trade towards the $22-$26 level.
  
• Jefferies upgraded Cellcom Israel (NYSE:CEL) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q1 results to reflect its improved EBITDA outlook.
  
• Morgan Keegan upgraded GATX (NYSE:GMT) to Outperform from Market Perform as they believe the company has increased opportunities to deploy capital given the current state of the market for railcars, which should result in share outperformance.
  
• Suntrust raised TNS, Inc (NYSE:TNS) to Buy from Neutral citing improved execution and the global shift towards electronic transactions.

• Chevron (NYSE:CVX) was raised at UBS to Buy from Neutral.
  
• RBC Capital upgraded TeleTech Holdings (NASDAQ:TTEC) to Sector Perform from Underperform.
  
• Citigroup upgraded SINA Corp (NASDAQ:SINA) to Buy from Hold.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Staples, Evergreen Solar and Genzyme were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded shares of Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS) to Buy from Hold following the company's raised bid for Corporate Express based on the increased chance the deal gets deal done and SPLS achieves meaningful EPS accretion.
  
• Jefferies also raised Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ: ESLR) to Buy from Hold on valuation, as they believe concerns regarding capital needs are now priced into the stock and that the company continues to take risk out of its growth story through execution.
  
• Bernstein upgraded Genzyme (NASDAQ: GENZ) to Outperform from Market Perform citing increased confidence in GENZ's product portfolio, geographic and therapeutic diversification, improved outlook, and valuation.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
  
• BearingPoint (NYSE: BE) was upgraded at Goldman to Neutral from Sell.
  
• Lehman upgraded Nexen (NYSE: NXY) to Overweight from Equal Weight.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Anadigics, Crystal River Capital and Canadian Solar were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Anadigics (NASDAQ: ANAD) to Perform from Outperform on valuation following the recent run-up.
  
• Wachovia downgraded Crystal River Capital (NYSE: CRZ) to Market Perform from Outperform citing the uncertain near-term strategic outlook.
  
• Broadpoint downgraded shares of Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) to Buy from Strong Buy on valuation following yesterday's rally but raised their target to $45 from $29.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• UBS cut Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE: SHO) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• KeyBanc downgraded Wabtec (NYSE: WAB) to Hold from Buy.
  
• Goldman downgraded Fiserv (NASDAQ: FISV) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Suntrust downgraded Spectrum Brands (NYSE: SPC) to Neutral from Buy.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Invesco, Kimberly Clark and Crawford & Company were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Jefferies finds Invesco (NYSE: IVZ) compelling given the company's focus on expense control, strong cash flow characteristics, and attractive valuation. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating and $33 target.
  
• Caris started Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB) with a Below Average rating and $58 target. The firm believes consensus estimates may be too high given the high cost of commodities.
  
• Suntrust started Crawford & Company (NYSE: CRDB) with a Buy rating and $8 target, and believes the company is at the "front end" of a turnaround in operations.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Bernstein initiated Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR) with an Outperform rating and $100 target.
  
• BMO Capital assumed Range Resources (NYSE: RRC) with an Outperform rating and $85 target.
  
• Intrepid Potash (NYSE: IPI) was started with a Sell rating and $40 target at Soleil.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Jefferies initiated McGraw-Hill (NYSE: MHP) with a Buy rating and $49 target. The firm believes the downturn in credit markets has already been fully priced into shares and expects the stock to gain momentum throughout 2008 in anticipation of liquidity returning to credit markets.
  
• RBC Capital initiated Curis (NASDAQ: CRIS) with an Outperform rating and $2.50 target based on the company's partnership with Genentech (NYSE: DNA) and potential upside from its pipeline.
  
• Merriman started Azure Dynamics (OTC: AZDDF) with a Buy rating. The firm believes the company's focus is where customers see the most benefit from a medium-duty hybrid or market-appropriate solutions and finds the stock attractively valued.

• Dr. Pepper Snapple (NYSE: DPS) was assumed with a Market Perform rating at Wachovia.
  
• Morgan Stanley started Chiquita Brands (NYSE: CQB) with an Equal Weight rating.
  
• Credit Suisse initiated Iron Mountain (NYSE: IRM) with a Neutral rating and $34 target.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Smith & Nephew (NYSE: SNN) was cut to Underweight from Neutral at JP Morgan, citing deteriorating fundamentals in several of SNN's key business lines.
  
• Goldman removed British Sky Broadcasting (NYSE: BSY) from its Conviction Buy List and said shares continue to trade at all-time low multiples and that the timing with Sky-Virgin dispute remains unclear. Shares remain Buy rated.
  
• Friedman Billings downgraded Electronic Data Systems (NYSE: EDS) to Market Perform from Outperform based on valuation following the Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) news.

• Goldman downgraded J Sainsbury (OTC: JSAIY) to Neutral from Buy and removed shares from the Conviction Buy List.
  
• Goldman also removed Hewlett-Packard from its Conviction Buy List.
  
• Citigroup cut BearingPoint (NYSE: BE) to Hold from Buy.
  
• Wachovia downgraded LHC Group (NASDAQ: LHCG) to Market Perform from Outperform.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of IberiaBank (NASDAQ: IBKC) to Market Perform from Underperform after the company announced that Pulaski has assumed the insured deposits of ANB Financial of Bentonville, Arkansas.
  
• KeyBanc upgraded Dynamic Materials (NASDAQ: BOOM) to Buy from Hold citing stability in base business, valuation, and the added benefit associated with a European competitor being acquired.
  
• Cowen raised Barr Pharma (NYSE: BRL) to Outperform from Neutral citing the recent pullback.

• Goldman added McGraw-Hill (NASDAQ: MHP) to its Conviction Buy List.
  
• RBC Capital raised RadioShack (NYSE: RSH) to Sector Perform from Underperform.
  
• Sirius Satellite (NASDAQ: SIRI) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Neutral from Sell.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Merriman believes Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST) is well-positioned for rapid growth as capacity constraints and dependence on subsidies drive the adoption of clean, dependable hydrocarbon-based technologies. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating.
  
• JMP Securities initiated Insulet (NASDAQ: PODD) with an Outperform rating and $29 target and expects increased adoption of the company's OmniPod disposable, tubeless insulin pump.
  
• Pacific Crest initiated Teradata (NYSE: TDC) with an Underperform rating. The firm is a seller of shares given the slowing economy and the company's exposure to larger IT deals.

• Commercial Metals (NYSE: CMC) was initiated at UBS with an Outperform rating and $37 target.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• B. Riley upgraded shares of PFF Bancorp (NYSE: PFB) to Neutral from Sell on valuation with the stock trading at 11% of the last reported tangible book value of $14.37 at December 31, 2007.
  
• RBC Capital believes Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) will benefit from network builds in North America and Asia. Shares were raised to Outperform from Sector Perform.
• Baird upgraded TAL International Group (NYSE: TAL) to Outperform from Neutral based on solid container leasing demand, rising container costs, and more constrained capital conditions.

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Telecom Italia (NYSE: TI) to Buy from Hold.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) to Neutral from Underweight.
  
• Goldman raised Marsh & McLennan (NYSE: MMC) to Neutral from Sell.