Upgrades and Downgrades (AGU, BHI, HON, MSFT, PT, UGI, MMM, ATHN, CPIX, DLTR, MOS, OTEX, STR, VAL, YHOO)

Published on Tuesday, 17 August 2010 07:55 Written by Danny Miller

New York, August 17^th (TradersHuddle.com) – Following are some of the top upgrades and downgrades before the market open.

Upgrades:

Agrium (NYSE:AGU), the producer of major agricultural nutrients, was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI), the solutions provider for the oil and gas industry, was upgraded to a Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna.

Honeywell (NYSE:HON), the aircraft cockpit instruments provider, was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), the largest software publisher in the world, was upgraded to a Buy from Hold at BGC Partners.

Portugal Telecom (NYSE:PT), the telecommunications provider in Portugal, was upgraded to a Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank.

UGI Corp. (NYSE:UGI), the Company that distributes and markets propane, butane, natural gas, and electricity for the eastern U.S., was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital.

Downgrades

3M (NYSE:MMM), the diversified manufacturer of Post It Notes and respirators, was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

AthenaHealth (NASDAQ:ATHN) was downgraded to a Neutral from Outperform at Robert W. Baird. The firm lowered its target price to $30 based on valuation.

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CPIX) was downgraded to a Hold from Buy at Duncan Williams. The firm lowered its target price to $6 from $8.50 following earnings. The firm says they lack conviction about the strength of data submitted to support the Acetadote sNDA and are concerned that a delay in patent approval for the new formulation could create an opportunity for generic entry in 2011-2012. Cumberland was also downgraded to a Hold from Buy at Jefferies, with the firm lowering its target price to $5.50.

Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR), the operator of a discount variety single-price-point retail chain, was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS), the concentrated phosphates, and potash producer, was downgraded to a Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.

Open Text (NASDAQ:OTEX) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital.

Questar (NYSE:STR), the natural gas-focused energy company, was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital.

Valspar (NYSE:VAL), the maker and distributor of coatings, coating intermediates, and specialty chemical products, was downgraded to a Neutral from Buy at Goldman.

Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO), the Internet portal and owner of the second largest search engine was downgraded to a Hold from Buy at BGC Partners.