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VIDEOUpgrades and Downgrades: Lions Gate Ready to Roar?
By
Justin Sharon
Mar 30, 2010 8:35 am
Wall Street ratings agencies set the tone for the stock market.
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It was a mixed day for clichés. Orbitz (OWW) and Expedia (EXPE), which rose a respective 5.27% and 6.15%, proved it is indeed better to travel than to arrive, especially if the accommodation you aimed to arrive at does not actually exist. But “age before beauty”? Not so much, what with Brookdale Senior Living tumbling 2.04% on a Goldman downgrade even as Estée Lauder (EL) got a 1.81% lift from positive S&P comments. And after two analyst upgrades of Progressive Corp (PGR) late last week, Oppenheimer (ODVCX) decided to go with the Flo and raised its rating also. Today in economics, S&P/Case-Shiller’s 20 city January home price index is out at 9:00AM Eastern and March consumer confidence follows at 10:00AM. On the corporate front Gammon Gold (GRS), LDK Solar (LDK), SAIC Inc (SAI), Sealy (ZZ) and Westwood One (WWON) are all expected to report results.
Initiations
Cisco Systems (CSCO): Morgan Stanley starts Cisco Systems at Equal Weight and assigns an Overweight rating and $37 price objective on Juniper Networks (JNPR). See, "Taking a Second Look at Tech."
Palm Inc (PALM): picked up with a Hold at Hudson Square.
Energy Transfer Partners (ETP): JP Morgan now covers Energy Transfer Partners at a Neutral.
Opexa Therapeutics (OPXA): The small cap stock is surging before the bell after being begun with an Outperform at Rodman & Renshaw, which sets a $6 target. The broker believes Tovaxin may offer MS patients substantial efficacy with a better safety profile compared to current drugs.Lions Gate Entertainment (LGF): initiated with a Buy at Soleil Securities, which sets an $8 price target. With their shares trading above Carl Icahn’s current offer, and given the shareholder concentration, Soleil says an offer is unlikely to materialize at the $6 bid price.
Brown-Forman (BF.B): begun with a Buy at Citigroup, which establishes a $67 target price.
Generac Holding (GNRC): picked up at Neutral by both Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. Robert W. Baird and Keybanc Capital are more generous, assigning an Outperform and Buy with respective price objectives of $18 and $19.
Essex Rental (ESSX): Oppenheimer initiates Essex Rental with an Outperform and $9 target at Oppenheimer, saying the company is positioned for a rebound across its diverse base of end markets.
iRobot (IRBT): C.K Cooper kicks off coverage on iRobot at a Hold.
AeroVironment (AVAV): is a new Buy ($30 target), also at C.K Cooper.
Upgrades
Apollo Group (APOL): RBC Capital raises its rating on Apollo Group to Sector Perform from Underperform.
Hecla Mining (HL): Bank of America/Merrill Lynch boosts Hecla Mining, now Neutral from Underperform.
Westlake Chemical (WLK): upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
Morgans Hotel Group (MHGC): JMP Securities ups Morgans Hotel Group to Outperform from Market Perform.
Haynes International (HAYN): upgraded to Buy from Hold at Hudson Securities.Downgrades
Cal-Maine Foods (CALM): cut to Hold from Buy by Jesup & Lamont after egg volumes declined 2.7%.
RTI International Metals (RTI): Bank of America/Merrill Lynch lowers RTI International Metals, now Underperform from Neutral.
Synaptics (SYNA): gets a Neutral-from-Outperform cut at Cowen.
GenVec (GNVC): The mall cap gets reduced to Hold from Buy at Roth Capital after the announcement that the Ph. III PACT study using TNFerade for pancreatic cancer was discontinued.
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No positions in stocks mentioned.
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