Analyst Actions: V, VMW, IBM, BRCD, FFIV

Visa, Inc. (NYSE: V): Goldman Sachs added Visa to its Conviction Buy list with a price target of $96. The firm stated that they view the company as a secular growth model with a defensive EPS growth profile. The firm expects double-digit EPS growth, due to the continued secular shift to electronic payments, strong global consumer volume/transaction growth and ongoing traction in emerging payments. They also said Visa remains the best ways to invest in emerging payments (mobile, prepaid, e-commerce and P2P).

VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW): Credit Suisse upgraded its rating on the company to Outperform from Neutral. The firm lifted its price target on the stock to $115 fom $100.

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM): Goldman Sachs upgraded IBM to Buy from Neutral and raised their 12-month price target on th stock to $195 from $170. 

Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: BRCD): Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on the company to Sell from Neural. The firm slashed its price target on the stock to $3.30 from $3.80. The firm said they see downside to consensus estimates even after its negative preannouncement.

F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV): Goldman Sachs upgraded F5 Networks t Neutral Sell to Neutral. However, the firm cut its price target to $94 from $98. The firm cited significant underperformance, which now prices in their below consensus estimates. "We view F5 Networks as a secular winner at a strategic point in the data center that can sustainably grow EPS in the high teens," the firm said.

Full Disclosure: None. 

Analyst Actions: ORCL, BBBY, ADBE, BP, AONE

Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL): RBC Capital downgraded its rating on the company to Sector Perform from Outperform. The firm slashed its price target on the stock to $30 from $36.

Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY): Oppenheimer upgraded ita rating on the stock to Outperform from Perform with a $63 price target citing the recent pullback in shares and the company's attractive growth prospects.

Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE): RBC Capital downgraded Adobe to Unerperform from Sector Perform. The firm cut ts price target on the company to $22 from $32.

BP Plc Inc. (NYSE: BP): Goldman Sachs downgraded the company to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $54, citing sector outperformance and concerns about the declines in the Gulf of Mexico portfolio. The firm stated, "BP has performed strongly over the past three months vs. the sector and versus the market, while the 2Q results were disappointing for profitability and volumes and there is no visibility as to when the company might start drilling again in the GoM."

A123 Systems (NASDAQ: AONE): Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Buy. The firm cut its price target on the stock to $5 from $9. The firm cited lower visibility into the next catalyst - the extent of profitability longer term. The GM (NYSE: GM) supply deal provides comfort around the company's relevance but does not address profit potential, according to the firm.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: FSLR, VMW, MON, MOS

First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR): Jefferies upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Hold to Buy. The firm lifted its pricde target on the stock to $132 from $115. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "In our opinion FSLR is now the most defensive name in solar as risks to its 2H have moderated. We see positive risk/reward using a conservative Sum-of-the-Parts valuation sanity check, and upgrade to BUY from Hold with a new $132 PT. We note an upward bias to PT on potential identified catalysts."

VMware (NYSE: VMW) Inc. (NYSE: VMW): FBR Capital upgraded its rating on VMware to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $110.00.

Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON): BofA/Merrill Lynch this morning upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Neutral.

Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS): Ticonderoga Securities on Wednesday upgraded the company to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $80.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: S, AIG, GILD, WYNN

Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S): BTIG on Tuesday upgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Sell. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "We upgraded Sprint based on valuation as the stock now trades under 5.0x our 2012 EBITDA estimate, which is below consensus...We are not moving to a Buy because we believe that Sprint’s stock can fall further given its uncertain EBITDA, high debt leverage and lack of free cash flow. We also believe it needs to develop a clear 4G strategy including financing or taking control of Clearwire (Nasdaq: CLWR). At $2.00, Sprint would be trading at 4.0x our 2012 EBITDA estimate, excluding any investments it would need to make in Clearwire, spectrum or an acceleration of its network modernization program."

American International Group (NYSE: AIG): Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded its rating on the stock to Market Perform from Underperform with a price target of $24. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "We are upgrading the shares of AIG to Market Perform as the shares have fallen to be in line with our $24 price target. We remain cautious in our outlook but believe the current valuation properly weighs a cautious stance."

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD): Brean Murray Carret & Co. initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $52. In a research note to clients, the firm stated "We believe GILD shares are set to outperform over the next 12 months, given a potential U.S. approval of a novel, fixed-dose combination therapy over the next few weeks, the anticipated move forward with collaboration around a novel PI-based FDC with Tibotec, and expected positive data from GILD's most-watched, development-stage asset, the Quad."

Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN): Citigroup upgraded its rating on the company to Hold from Sell. The firm lowered its price target by $0.50 to $133.00.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: EMC, SPWRA, SBUX, WFC

EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC): Auriga on Monday upgraded its rating on EMC to Buy from Hold with a price target of $28.00. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "We expect EMC will continue to be a share-gaining leader in the very attractive storage space, and its exposure to other high growth markets beyond storage suggests a top-line CAGR of 10%+ is sustainable. We also believe EMC can continue to push margins modestly higher, and thus bottom-line growth of 15% appears very possible, placing EMC into the group of elite large cap growth names in the tech space. After the recent market sell-off, we now believe EMC shares are attractively priced given that outlook, and we believe EMC's high exposure to a staple area like storage offers some protection during a downturn, thus we are upgrading the stock."

SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA): Brigantine Advisors this morning downgraded the company to Sell from Hold. The firm slashed its price target to $11 from $22.

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX): Robert W. Baird upgraded Starbucks to Outperform from Neutral. The firm maintained its $45 price target on the stock.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC): Sterne Agee upgraded the company to Buy from Neutral.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: AIG, MO, TLAB, STEC

American International Group (NYSE: AIG): Citigroup on Friday initiated coverage on the company with a Hold rating and a price target of $33.

Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO): Stifel Nicolaus upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Hold to Buy with a price target of $29.00.

Tellabs Inc. (NASDAQ: TLAB): Kaufman Bros. initiated coverage on the company with a Hold rating and a price target of $5. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "Our HOLD rating is based on: 1) TLAB is challenged by product transition issues; and 2) legacy infrastructure levels are declining, while growth product segments have not gained meaningful traction...As anticipated, TLAB's 2Q11 results disappointed the Street. However, international revenue was up 70% Y/Y, and a record 61% of total revenue came from growth products. That said, guidance for 3Q11 was mildly encouraging...We believe that TLAB's risk/reward profile is more likely to improve than not going forward, allowing investors to take a fresh look at the story."

STEC, Inc. (NASDAQ: STEC): Benchmark downgraded its rating on the company to hold from Buy. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "Other storage and server OEMs will continue to desire the most cost-effective SSDs as each of these OEMs attempts to increase the attach rate of SSDs. The next big products cycles for STEC include gen IV ZeusIOPS and PCIe cards, both of which should be shipping by 2Q12. If all goes well, STEC could reclaim some market share and could become ultra competitive on a price/GB basis with alternative solutions such as SATA-based SSDs."

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: CSCO, GPS, TSL, REE

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO): Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $21.

Gap, Inc. (NYSE: GPS): Jefferies upgraded the company to Buy from Hold to Buy. The firm raised its price target to $25 from $16.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL): Collins Stewart downgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Buy on expectations consensus estimates for the company will need to come down. 

 
Rare Element Resources (AMEX: REE): Global Hunter Securities initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $18.50. In a research notev to clients, the firm commented, "Rare Element Resources (Rare Element) is advancing the Bear Lodge rare earth project towards production and will be one of two significant projects in the United States providing the critical/strategic metals currently in short supply and facing export restrictions from China. We believe the project's location, straightforward mining plan and relatively low capex makes Rare Element a compelling investment at this time. In addition, the company also has an adjacent low grade, but high tonnage gold deposit, Sundance, which has a resource in excess of 900k oz Au. We believe that Rare Element is undervalued based on the upcoming catalysts and advantages over other development companies in the REE sector."

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: MSFT, AMD, TXN, ADSK

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT): William Blair on Friday downgraded Microsoft to Market PErform from Outperform following Q4 results from the company Thursday afternoon.

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE: AMD): Wells Fargo this morning upgraded its rating on the company to Market Perform from Unerperform. The firm also raised its price target on the stock to $7.50 from $6. 

Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN): Exane BNP Paribas on Friay downgraded the company to Underperform from Neutral.

Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK): Jefferies upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Hold. The firm also lifted its price target on the stock to $44 from $40. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "Our survey work suggests only a modest downtick (incl Europe) and we expect an in-line F2Q12 and in-line guide. We are also becoming more positive on suites and think they will positively impact growth next year. Finally, while the stock is not drop-dead cheap, at 15X CY12 EPS (ex net ~$7 cash a share) we think we are buying growth at a reasonable price."

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: INTC, YGE, CREE, TOL

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC): Nomura Securities on Thursday downgraded its rating on the company to Reduce from Neutral. The firm lowered its price target to $18 from $23. In a research note to clients, the firm said, "Intel outperformed the S&P 500 by 16% and the SOX by 23% over the past three months based on expectations for strong Q2 results. While revenue and EPS were above our estimates, we believe earnings quality was weak. While management backed off its earlier forecast for double-digit PC growth in 2011, we believe the outlook for seasonal growth (+7%) in the Sept quarter is not conservative. We are lowering our estimates from $13.6bn/$0.61 to $13.5bn/$0.57 in Q3 and from $54.8bn/$2.25 to $53.5bn/$2.10 in CY12. Our price target is based on 9x CY12 EPS. This multiple is inline with HP (NYSE: HPQ) at 7x, Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) at 9x, and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) at 10x." 

Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE): Deutsche Bank downgraded its rating on the stock to Hold from Buy. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "We believe Yingli’s gross margin is likely to drop to c.22% in 2Q11E and c.20% in 3Q11E. Yingli has relatively greater exposure in China, with c.30% of its shipments to China in 2H11E that we believe would be sold at an ASP comparable to modules shipped to the overseas market. We expect the company’s manufacturing cost advantage would allow it to continue to capture more market share from its peers. Trading at 8x 2011E P/E, we see limited upside and downgrade the stock." 

Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE): Credit Suisse on Thursday initiated coverage on Cree with a Neutral rating. 

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL): Citigroup on Thursday downgraded its rating on the company to Hold from Buy.

Full Disclosure: None. 

Analyst Actions: NFLX, SPWRA, LNKD, ACI, DLTR

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX): Pacific Crest downgraded its rating on Netflix to Sector Perform from Outperform citing high investor expectations and valuation. 

SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA): Collins Stewart downgraed the company to Sell from Neutral, citing valuation. The firm has a $15 price target for the stock. 

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD): JPMorgan downgraded LinkedIn to Neutral from Overweight with an $85 price target.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI): Citigroup upgraded the company to Buy from Hold. The firm slashed its price target to $32 from $34.

Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR): Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Buy. The firm lifted its price target on the stock to $73 from $69.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: GOOG, RIG, FCX, FNSR, SKH

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG): Needham & Co. resumed coverage on Google with a Buy rating and a price target of $725. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "We believe Google is a compelling investment given its multiple billion dollar growth opportunities: Search remains the engine of growth and our 2H11 Search revenue estimates could prove conservative as advertisers shift more of their budgets online and wait to flush their budgets...We conservatively estimate that Google’s Display Advertising is on a $3 billion run rate...As the leading smartphone OS, Android’s market share is nearly 40% and could generate revenue of $4 billion in 2011...Local and Social represent emerging billion revenue opportunities...We are establishing FY12 estimates. We estimate pro forma EPS of $43.25 on revenue of net revenue of $34.9 billion." 

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG): Jefferies upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Hold. The firm lifted its price target on the stock to $80 from $79. In a research note to clients, the firm said, "With the jack-up and UDW rig segments on the verge of achieving real pricing power for the first time in several years, we are taking a more positive stance on the offshore drillers."

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX): Bank of America on Friday initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $75. 

Finisar Corp. (NASDAQ: FNSR): Jefferies initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $23. 

Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. (NYSE: SKH): JMP Securities downgraded the company to Market Perform Market Outperform.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: EMC, CAT, MMM, FFIV, TOL

EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC): Merriman Curhan Ford on Thursay initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating. 

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT): Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from no rating. At the moment, Goldman has a price target of $128 placed on the company's stock.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM): BofA/Merrill Lynch downgraded its rating on the company to Unerperform from Neutral.

F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV): Atlantic Equities initiated coverage on the company with an Overweight rating an a price target of $138.

Toll Bros. (NYSE: TOL): Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Neutral. The firm raised its 6-month price target to $25 from $20to $25. In a research note to clients, the firm stated "In our 2Q11 housing survey we found that consumers in the higher income bracket are more constructive on home prices (33% in the $120K or above income category expect home price appreciation vs. 21% for the broad survey) and have a higher desire to purchase a new home (38% vs. 20% for the broad survey)."

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: GOOG, NFLX, AMZN, ETFC, EBAY

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG): JP Morgan on Wednesday initiated coverage on Google with and Outperform rating and a price target of $660.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX): JP Morgan initiated coverage on the company with an Outperform rating and a price target of $340.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN): JP Morgan initiated coverage on the stock with an Outperform rating and a price target of $251.

E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC): BMO Capital initiated coverage on the company with a Market Perform rating and a $14 price target.

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY): JP Morgan initiated coverage on eBay with a Neutral rating and a price target of $38.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: ORCL, ALU, AMZN, DELL, ACI

Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL): Goldman Sachs resumed coverage on Oracle with a Buy rating and $40 price target. In a research note to clients, the firm said that it expects the company's cloud portfolio to drive upside and is modeling FY2012 revenue growth slightly north of 10%, versus the consensus of 8.5%. Upside will be driven by Exadata and Exalogic ramp. Goldman also said Oracle is gaining share in the data center, while large-cap peers struggle to maintain relevancy. Offerings from the company position it strongly to benefit from "big data" secular tailwinds.The consensus view of 130bp of margin expansion in FY12 may prove conservative, according to the firm. They expect the comapny to maintain an EPS growth rate of 15-20%. Results in late-September and announcements of additional cloud solutions at OpenWorld in October are near-term catalysts for the shares.

Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU): Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy. The firm lowered its price target to E4 from E4.5. In a research note to clients, the firm said, "After significant outferformance, we believe ALU' share price now largely reflects an anticipated margin recovery to 6+% by 2012. With revenue and margin momentum likely starting to slow in H2 into 2012, we believe the stock could be rangebound from here."

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN): Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on the stock with a Neutral rating. 

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL): Jeffries & Co. initiated coverage on Dell with Hold rating. In a research note to clients, the firm said that despite near-term benefits from falling PC component prices and the enterprise PC refresh cycle, we believe Dell has longer-term disadvantages in a tablet and cloud world.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI): RBC Capital on Tuesday upgraded its rating on the company to outperform from sector perform. The firm retained its price target of $40.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: LVS, JASO, YUM, CSIQ, ISRG

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS): Brean Murray Carret & Co. initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $53. In a research note to clients, the firm stated, "Given returns generated to date in Asia, the expansion underway on Cotai, and upside potential in Singapore, we believe LVS will generate strong returns for long-term investors. Although the opening of Galaxy in Cotai could negatively impact market share in the near-tern, we believe that over the longer term, LVS is among the best positioned to capture the continued growth in Cotai." 

JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO): Jefferies downgraded the company to Hold from Buy. The firm also slashed its price target to $5 from $7. 

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ): Jefferies downgraded its rating on the stock to Hold from Buy. The firm lowered its price target on the strock to $11 from $14. The firm said that tier two suppliers like CSIQ has lack the distribution and brand to command a price premium.

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM): Goldman Sachs downgraded Yum to Sell from Neutral citing China uncertainty and Taco Bell weakness. The firm sees risk to China P&L, which is 40% of profits. Goldman said China SSS may slow by the 2nd-half as they have historically tracked with China GDP, which is showing signs of slowing. Moreover, food PPI and labor inflation in China have continued to increase, which will pressure margins. The China issues come at a time when their survey indicates lingering brand damage to Taco Bell in the US.

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG): Gleacher & Co. downgraded the company to Neutral from Buy.

Full Disclosure: None. 

Analyst Actions: GOOG, SNDK, GME, AUO, NYT

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG): Evercore Partners on Tuesday upgraded its rating on the company to Overweight from Equalweight. The firm lifted its price target on the stock to $670 from $620. 

SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK): Deutsche Bank this morning upgrading SanDisk to Buy from Hold. In a note to clients, the firm state, "We now believe SNDK margins will become far more sustainable in 2012 thanks to a combination of balanced industry supply growth and SNDK's leadership in TLC NAND. Continued cost leadership (thanks to TLC) should result in solid product GM through 2012 even in a muted demand environment. The improved outlook on margins combined with attractive valuation (+$25/share book value and $350m of annual royalties) leads us to raise our rating from Hold to Buy."

GameStop Corporation (NYSE: GME): Piper Jaffray upgraded the company to Neutral from Underweight. The firm raised its price target on the stock to $27 from $17.

AU Optronics (NYSE: AUO): Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Buy. Goldman expects capex at Taiwan panel makers AU Optronics and CMI to decline 9%/11% in 2011/2012, with capacity growth of 13%/6%, respectively. Goldman expects both to turn to losses in 2011/2012, due to high break-even utilization rates.

New York Times (NYSE: NYT): UBS on Tuesday upgraded the stock to Neutral from Sell.

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: RIMM, DRYS, POT, BSX, SPLS

Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM): J.P. Morgan on Friday downgraded its rating on the company to neutral from overweight. "The severe EPS target cut and Bold 9900 delay put two final nails in the coffin of our overweight thesis," 

DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS): Sterne Agee this morning upgraded its rating on the company to Buy from Neutral.

Potash Corp. (NYSE: POT): TD Newcrest raised its rating on the company to Buy from Hold citing price weakness and overreaction to Ethanol Vote. The firm retained its price target of $61. 

Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX): Morgan Keegan initiated coverage on the company with an Outperform rating and a price target of $8.

Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS): Nomura on Friday downgraded Staples  to Neutral from Buy citing valuation. The firm retained its price target of $14. 

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: INTC, AMD, HD, ALTR, RF

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC): FBR Capital on Thursday downgraded its rating on Intel to Market Perform from Outperform. 

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE: AMD): FBR Capital Markets this morning upgraded AMD to Outperform from Market Perform. In a research note to clients, the firm noted, "[Our] positive stance on AMD is largely tactical in nature and less of a long-term investment until these competitive dynamics can be further assessed under AMD's.

Home Depot (NYSE: HD): UBS intiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price target of $41.

Altera Corporation (NASDAQ: ALTR): Morgan Stanley upgraded its rating on the company to Equal-weight from Underweight. The firm removed its $39 price target.

Regions Financial Corp. (RF): Bank of America downgraded its rating on the company to Neutral from Buy.

Full Dislcosure: None. 

Analyst Actions: NTAP, MYGN, KFT, SOL, RLD

NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP): Credit Suisse on Wednesdy upgraded NetApp to Outperform from Neutral citing robust storage business fundamentals and increased confidence in the Engenio acquisition. The firm raised its price target to $62 from $54. 

Myriad Genetics (NASDAQ: MYGN): Auriga downgraded its rating on the company to Hold from Buy. The firm lowered its price target to $25 from $27.

Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT): Jefferies initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and $40 price target. 

ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL): Macquarie downgraded the company to Neutral from Outperform.

RealD (NYSE: RLD): Morgan Joseph initiated coverage on the company with a Buy rating and a price rating of $28. In a research note to clients, the firm said, "Dominant Market Share Within a Rapidly Expanding 3-D Marketplace - RealD theaters account for roughly 80% of domestic gross box office revenues and maintain over 50% of 3-D commercial screens worldwide. Over the past twelve months, RealD's total screen installation base has exceeded 15,000, with year-over-year system growth of 182%." 

Full Disclosure: None.

Analyst Actions: CSCO, DRYS, SPWRA, WFR, GS

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO): RBC Capital downgraded its rating on Cisco to Underperform from Outperform.

DryShips, Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS): Wells Fargo upgraded the company to Outperform from Market Perform citing valuation and the pending U.S. listing of the company's drillship subsidiary, which the firm believes may unlock value for shareholders. The firm has a $5.00-$6.00 target range for shares. "Shares have traded off 31% YTD, largely on the back of the weak dry bulk market and DRYS' entry into the struggling tanker market to the point that we now believe shares are considerably oversold," the firm said.

SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA): Goldman Sachs lowered its rating on the company to Sell from Neutral with a $14 price target. The firm cited fundamental and technical risks following the expected close of Total's tender offer.

MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE: WFR): Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the stock to Neutral from Sell. However, the firm slashed its 6-month price target to $10 from $11. In a research note to clients, the firm said "We continue to view MEMC as a capital-intensive business with a constrained returns profile vs. peers. And we believe a back-half-weighted 2011 earnings cadence heightens execution risk."

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS): RBC Capital on Tuesday initiated coverage on the company with an Underperform rating. 

Full Disclosure: None.