Up/Downgrades (AKS, ACC, AEO, CF, CMG, DNKN, GD, LULU, STLD, WRC, APKT, AVB, CHD, CXO, LMT, MOS, NTAP, SD, SAP)

Published on Wednesday, 04 January 2012 09:13 Written by Danny Miller

New York, January 4^th (TradersHuddle.com) – Following are some of the top upgrades and downgrades before the market open.

Upgrades

AK Steel (NYSE:AKS), the Ohio based steel company, was upgraded to a Neutral from Underperform at Bank of America Merrill.

American Campus Communities (NYSE:ACC) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Morgan Keegan. The firm raised its target price to $48 from $38.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO), the specialty retailer of casual apparel and outerwear for men and women, was upgraded to a Buy from Neutral at Janney Capital Markets. The firm set its target price at $20.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF), the North American manufacturer and distributor of agricultural fertilizers, was upgraded to a Buy from Neutral at Citigroup.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) was upgraded to a Conviction Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Dunkin Brands Group (NASDAQ:DNKN) was upgraded to a Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD), the diversified defense company and maker of Gulfstream business jet, was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.

lululemon athletica (NASDAQ:LULU), the designer and retailer of athletic apparel, was upgraded to a Conviction Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) was upgraded to a Buy from Neutral at Bank of America Merrill.

Warnaco Group (NYSE:WRC), the maker of Calvin Klein menswear, and Speedo swimwear, was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Downgrades

Acme Packet (NASDAQ:APKT) was downgraded to a Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank and to a Neutral from Outperform at Wedbush.

AvalonBay (NYSE:AVB), the multifamily REIT, was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Morgan Keegan. The firm lowered its target price to $135 from $150.

Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD), the maker of Arm and Hammer baking soda, was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital.

Concho Resources (NYSE:CXO) was upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), the global defense company maker of the C-130 and F-22 aircraft, was downgraded to a Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan. Lockheed was downgraded to Underperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital.

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

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP), the storage and data management solutions provider was downgraded to a Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.

SandRidge Energy (NYSE:SD) was downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital.

SAP AG (NYSE:SAP), the provider of business management software, was downgraded to a Sell from Hold at Ticonderoga. The firm set its target price at $46.