Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) Reiterated Buy and raised price target to $63 from $55 at Argus.
ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML) Raised target at Credit Suisse.
AutoNation Inc. (NYSE: AN) Started as Neutral at Stern Agee.
Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) Cut to Underperform from Neutral at Zacks (late Monday call).
Choice Hotels (NYSE: CHH) Cut to Underperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Gulfmark Offshore, Inc. (NYSE: GLF) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
HSN, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSNI) Started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.
ICICI Bank Ltd. (NYSE: IBN) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) maintained as the top tech/semi pick for 2012 from Credit Suisse.
Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) Reiterated Outperform and raised target to $36 from $32 at Credit Suisse.
Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. (NYSE: MMI) Maintained Sell at Argus.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) Cut to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/ML.
Overseas Shipholding Group Inc. (NYSE: OSG) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
Republic Services, Inc. (NYSE: RSG) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE: R) named as value stock of the day at Zacks.
SM Energy Co. (NYSE: SM) Maintained Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) Reiterated Buy and raised estimates at Argus.
Tidewater Inc. (NYSE: TDW) Started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.
The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays.
Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays.

If you enjoyed the Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades, you can sign up in the box below to join our morning email list to receive news directly in your inbox each morning. We also include major IPO’s and M&A, special situation developments, observations on Warren Buffett and key market gurus, as well as special exclusive feature stories.

Your email address

subscribe

terms and conditions

JON C. OGG

Gabelli said that for the period ending April 30, the Focus Five outperformed the S&P 500, and is now +184.47% since inception (Jan. 31, 2006) vs. -2.18% for the S&P.

HSN Inc. (NASDAQ: HSNI) is listed as Strong Comps + Takeout… “The second-largest multichannel commerce network in the US had 2009 sales of $2.8 billion with EBITDA of $194 million. We believe multichannel retail is in the early stages of renewed secular sales growth, and that HSN’s experienced management team should be able to improve EBITDA margins substantially.Focus on the Liberty Media standstill agreement, which limits its ownership to 32% and expires in August 2010. We believe there are strategic advantages in a combination of HSNI and QVC. At ~7x 2011P EBITDA $257 million, we view shares as attractive based on current market dynamics and the potential for improved profitability and multiple expansion.”

Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (NYSE: MJN) is listed as Strong EM Growth… “The pediatric nutrition market category is expected to increase from $23 billion to over $30 billion by 2014.  MJN has leading share in the U.S. as well as many emerging markets, and currently operates in 139 cities in China.  Focus on MJN’s growth in emerging markets, most notably China, which grew by 25% in Q409.  We continue to view MJN as an attractive target for strategic acquirers who are looking to increase their exposure to fast-growing, healthy product categories.

TD AMERITRADE Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: AMTD) is listed as Financial Leverage… “As a leader in the online brokerage industry, AMTD is well positioned to participate from industry growth and consolidation. AMTD has increased client assets at a 7% annual rate, including $62 billion in net new assets.  As a holder of a large float of customer assets ($52.3 billion in spread-based balances), we believe the first 100 bps change in the Fed Funds rate could improve annual earnings by about $0.28/shr.”

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO) is listed as En Banc = Endgame… “We believe TIVO’s intellectual property to pause / rewind / play live TV makes them a likely takeover target to a variety of potential acquirers, including technology companies Cisco, Microsoft or Apple and distributors such as DISH or DTV.  TIVO trades at a significant discount to our 2011 PMV of $22 based on DISH and other operators entering contracts of $1.50+ per sub per month creating high margin recurring revenue.  We expect DISH’s en banc review to be rejected.”

Weatherford International Ltd. (NYSE: WFT) is listed as Performance Back on Track… “A unique global footprint positions WFT to capitalize on growing exploration and production in key markets such as Russia and Iraq.  Weatherford’s expanded product offering in the $13B directional drilling services market provides revenue growth opportunities and makes it an attractive acquisition target for a larger energy services company.  Focus on sequential quarterly earnings improvement as WFT is more levered to a recovery in international oil directed drilling activity and a restoration of institutional investor confidence following renewed quarterly guidance.  WFT trades at a compelling valuation 16.5x 2011 EPS of $1.10, 8x EBITDA, and a discount to our PMV of $22.”

Those removed from the FOCUS FIVE list are Cablevision Systems (NYSE: CVC), Coca-Cola FEMSA (NYSE: KOF), Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ), Mastercard, Inc. (NYSE: MA) and ITT Educational Services (NYSE: ESI).

JON C. OGG

Sponsor: 26 Cheap Stocks to Sell – Cheap stocks have been on a tear recently, but nine out of ten stocks are circling the drain!

• Animal Health (AHII) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• Blue Nile (NILE) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Fossil (FOSL) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Health Net (HNT) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
• HSN (HSNI) Started as Underweight at JPMorgan.
• IPCS (IPCS) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
• Louisiana-Pacific (LPX) Cut to Neutral at Banc of America.
• Microchip Technology (MCHP) Cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.
• Palm (PALM) Cut to Market Perform at Morgan Keegan.
• Penwest Pharmaceuticals (PPCO) Cut to Neutral at Baird.
• Raymond James Financial (RJF) Cut to Underperform at Wachovia.
• Southern Copper (PCU) Cut to Sell at Deutsche Bank.

Jon C. Ogg
November 5, 2008

• "HSNI" for HSN, the Home Shopping Network.  This unit also owns andoperates the Cornerstone Brands portfolio of catalogs and relatedwebsites, including Frontgate, Ballard Designs, Garnet Hill,Smith+Noble, The Territory Ahead, TravelSmith and Improvements, as wellas a limited number of retail stores.
• "IILG" for Interval Leisure Group, its travel and vacation network group of more than 2,400 resorts in 75 countries.
• "TKTM" for Ticketmaster, its live event ticketing and marketing operation spin-off.
• "TREE" for Tree.com, its lending and real estate business spin-off withunits such as LendingTree.com, RealEstate.com, REALTORS, and more.

Where these open and where they trade initially is anyone’s guess.Many of the units are currently counted as victims of economicweakness, the credit crunch, and other woes.  But this has been BarryDiller’s exit plan for months at IAC/Interactive.

Jon C. Ogg
August 21, 2008