CenterState (CSFL) (GIB) (HSP) (LXK) (NWBI) Get Ratings Downgrades

CenterState Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSFL), CGI Group Inc (NYSE: GIB), Hospira, Inc. (NYSE: HSP), Lexmark International, Inc. (NYSE: LXK) and Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: NWBI) get downgraded by analysts.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) downgraded CenterState Banks, Inc. (CSFL) from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) downgraded CGI Group Inc (GIB) from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) downgraded Hospira, Inc. (HSP) from a “Hold” rating to a “Sell” rating. They set a price target of $1 on the company, down from $54.

Brean Murray downgraded Lexmark International, Inc. (LXK) from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NWBI) from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

MedAssets (MDAS) (MDRX) (QSII) (SOHU) (VICL) - New Ratings and Price Targets

New ratings and price targets on MedAssets, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDAS), Allscripts Healthcare Solutions (NASDAQ: MDRX), Quality Systems Inc (NASDAQ: QSII), Sohu.Com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) and Vical Incorporated (NASDAQ: VICL).

Oppenheimer initiated coverage on MedAssets, Inc. (MDAS). They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $21.00 on the company.

Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Allscripts Healthcare Solutions (MDRX). They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $25.00 on the firm.

Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Quality Systems Inc (QSII). They placed a “Perform” rating on the stock.

Brean Murray initiated coverage on Sohu.Com Inc. (SOHU). They placed a “Hhold” rating on the shares.

Canaccord Genuity initiated coverage on Vical Incorporated (VICL). They placed a “buy” rating on the company.

Astronics (ATRO) (AH) (CSOD) (CYOU) - New Ratings and Price Targets

New ratings and price targets on Astronics Co. (NASDAQ: ATRO), Accretive Health, Inc. (NYSE: AH), Cornerstone OnDemand (NASDAQ: CSOD) and Changyou.com Ltd (NASDAQ: CYOU).

Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Accretive Health, Inc. (AH). They placed a “Perform” rating on the firm.

Pacific Crest initiated coverage on Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD). They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $23.00 on the company.

Capstone initiated coverage on Astronics Co. (ATRO). They placed a “Buy” rating on the stock.

Brean Murray initiated coverage on Changyou.com Ltd (CYOU). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $53.00 on them.

Agilent (A) (ABFS) (BBBY) (EFII) (HXL) PTs Changed

Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A), Arkansas Best Corp (NASDAQ: ABFS), Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY), Electronics For Imaging, Inc. (NASDAQ: EFII) and Hexcel Co. (NYSE: HXL) all had their price targets adjusted Tuesday, April 26, with all but Arkansas Best Corp. getting a boost from analysts.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) raised its price target on Agilent Technologies Inc. (A) from $55.00 to $56.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Piper Jaffray cut its price target on Arkansas Best Corp (ABFS) from $27.00 to $25.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the firm.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) raised its price target on Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) from $62.00 to $65.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the them.

Brean Murray boosted its price target on Electronics For Imaging, Inc. (EFII) from $18.00 to $23.00. They have a “Buy” rating on EFII.

Jefferies increased their price target Hexcel Co. (HXL) to $22.00. They have a “Hold” rating on the HXL.

Newfield (NFX) (PCX) (WLT) (BUCY) Price Target Changes for April 25th

Here are price target changes on April 25th for Newfield (NFX)(PCX)(WLT) and (BUCY).

RBC Capital lowered their price target on Newfield Exploration Co. (NYSE:NFX) from $99.00 to $96.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

Brean Murray boosted their price target on shares of Patriot Coal Corp (NYSE:PCX) from $35.00 to $37.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the stock.

Brean Murray slashed their price target on Walter Energy (NYSE:WLT) from $160.00 to $156.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the stock.

FBR Capital lowered their price target on Walter Energy (NYSE:WLT) from $140.00 to $135.00. They now an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

Jefferies maintained a “Hold” rating on shares of Bucyrus International, Inc. (NASDAQ:BUCY). They have a $92.00 price target on the stock.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VRTX) Owns HCV Treatment with TVR

With a strong pipeline and TVR being the top drug for HCV treatment through 2012, Vertex (NASDAQ:VRTX) looks good for the short and long term.

Brean says, "We consider TVR to be the best in class drug for HCV treatment, and to remain so until 2012. Additionally, VRTX has pipeline drugs for RA, CF and epilepsy, but our valuation is driven by a discounted cash flow analysis and a disounted multiples analysis that only incorporates projected TVR and VX-222 revenue, in an effort to be more conservative."

Brean Murray Carret & Co. launched coverage on Vertex (VRTX) with a "Buy" rating. Vertex closed Friday at $39.01, down $0.38, or 0.96 percent. Brean has a price target of $50 on Vertex.

EMC (NYSE:EMC) Move to "Top Pick" of Brean Murray Carret & Co.

Brean Murray Carret & Co. boosted EMC (NYSE:EMC) to "Top Pick" status for 2011, citing their growing storage systems market opportunity.

They said EMC "can benefit from both an expanding storage systems market opportunity as well as share gains in both of its core storage systems business and VMware."

In response, Brean raised their full year 2011 EPS estimate from $1.40 to $1.50 and introduced their full year 2012 estimate at $1.70.

Brean reiterates a "Buy" rating on EMC, which was trading at $23.91, down $0.06, or 0.29 percent, as of 2:19 PM EST. Brean raised their price target on EMC from $24 to $30.

Tetra Tech (NASDAQ:TTEK) Has Room to Move Up Says Brean Murray Carret

After recently meeting with Tetra Tech's (NASDAQ:TTEK) CEO CEO, Dan Batrack, and the IR representative Jorge Casado, Brean Murray Carret & Co. said they came away even more bullish on the company than they had been.

They stated that, "despite the recent rise in the share price, we believe favorable tailwinds across much of the business model will lead to higher earnings revisions in coming quarters, and with it a higher share price."

Brean Murray Carret & Co. reiterates their "Buy" rating on Tetra Tech (TTEK), which closed Thursday at $24.75, gaining $0.10, or 0.41. Brean Murray Carret & Co. boosted their price target on Tetra Tech from $30 to $34.

NPS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:NPSP) Gets Favorable Amgen/NPSP Ruling

The favorable outcome of the lawsuit by NPS Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:NPSP) against Teva for ANDA filing of generic Sensipar has been ruled in NPS's favor, and that removes significant risk for the company.

Brean Murray Carret & Co. said the ruling should keep the generic Sensipar off the market until 2018, when the original Sensipar patents run out.

They raised their full year 2010 and full year 2011 EPS estimates from $0.77 and $0.42 to $0.75 and $0.37.

Brean Murray Carret & Co. reiterates a "Buy" rating on NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc., which closed Monday at $7.61, gaining $0.39, or 5.4 percent. They increased their price target on NPS from $10 to $11.

Puda Coal (NYSE:PUDA) Approved as Coal Mining Company

Puda Coal (NYSE:PUDA) has received permission from the Shanxi government to move beyond coal washing to being a full-fledged coal mining company.

Starting on January 1, Puda will be able to produce coal at its Da Wa mine.

The company has also recently acquired new thermal mines, which when fully operational, will be able to produce about 2 million tons of coal annually.

Brean Murray Carret & Co. raised their price target on Puda as a result of the changes, although noting they're lowering their EPS estimates for full year 2011 from $2.04 to $1.83 on acquisition expenditures.

Puda closed Monday at $11.98, up $0.05, or 0.42 percent. Brean has a price target of $20 on them, raising it from $18.

Take Profits on Cloud (NYSE:CLD) Says Brean Murray

Cloud Peak Energy (NYSE:CLD) has made a big move since August, rising 37 percent since that time, and rather than advising to buy on weakness, Brean Murray Carret & Co. recommends taking profits and look at companies like Alpha Natural (NYSE:ANR) or Massey Energy (NYSE:MEE) with exposure to met and eastern thermal coal.

Brean said, "We would NOT use today's weakness as a buying opportunity. Rather we'd look at it this way: CLD is up 37% since Aug. 10. That is the day Powder River Basin (PRB) prices peaked from 2011 at $15.40/ton/ They are currently at $13.65/ton, or a decrease of 11% from the peak. This negative correlation between the price of the underlying commodity and the stock is extremely unusual, and something usually has to give...We'd use this opportunity to suggest clients take profits from CLD and redeploy them on names with eastern thermal and met coal exposure, such as Alpha Natural (BUY) or Massey Energy (BUY)."

Brean Murray Carret & Co. maintains a "Hold" on Cloud Peak Energy which closed Monday at $21.34, down $1.58, or 6.89 percent. Alpha Natural Resources ended the trading session at $52.86, down $0.01, or 0.02 percent. Massey closed at $50.43, down $1.55, or 2.98 percent.

Buy Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) on Pull Backs Says Brean

Brean Murray Carret & Co. liked what they heard with Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX), based on buying back shares and a $1.18 billion raise in credit.

Brean said, "We're raising our PT to $18 after 1) digesting STX's $2B share repurchase authorization announcement and 2) yesterday's announcement of up to a $1.18B credit raise - $750 private placement of notes and discussions for up to $350 million credit facility. Bottom line is we believe the stock likely continues to works its way higher, and we'd certainly continue to be buyers on any meaningful pull-backs."

Brean Murray Carret & Co. maintains a "Buy' on Seagate Technology, which closed Thursday at $15.14, up $0.07, or 0.46 percent. They raised their price target on them from $16 to $18.