Carmike (CKEC) (SXCI) (CFR) (SFSF) (MRK) (CNW) Upgraded

Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (NASDAQ: CKEC), SXC Health Solutions (NASDAQ: SXCI), Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE: CFR), SuccessFactors, Inc. (NASDAQ: SFSF), Merck & Co Inc (NYSE: MRK) and Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW) upgraded by analysts.

SXC Health Solutions (SXCI) was upgraded by Dougherty & Co. from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $65.00 on the company.

Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (CKEC) was upgraded by Barrington Research from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (CFR) was upgraded by Wunderlich from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $60.00 on the company.

SuccessFactors, Inc. (SFSF) was upgraded by Gleacher & Co. to a “Buy” rating.

Merck & Co Inc. (MRK) was upgraded by Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $37.00 on the company.

Con-way Inc. (CNW) was upgraded by Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC) from an “Underweight” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $30.00 on the company.

Viacom (VIA-B) (CNW) (ESC) (FFIV) (GVA) (NVDA) (SBRA) Price Targets Changed

Viacom, Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA.B), Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), Emeritus Co. (NYSE: ESC), F5 Networks (NASDAQ: FFIV), Granite Construction Inc. (NYSE: GVA), NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) and Sabra Healthcare Reit (NASDAQ: SBRA) price targets adjusted by analysts.

Viacom, Inc. (VIA-B) had its price target raised by Wedbush from $60.00 to $65.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Con-way Inc. (CNW) had its price target lowered by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) to $42.00. The have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Emeritus Co. (ESC) had its price target lowered by Stifel Nicolaus from $30.00 to $25.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

F5 Networks (FFIV) had its price target lowered by ThinkEquity from $135.00 to $120.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Granite Construction Inc. (GVA) had its price target lowered by FBR Capital from $33.00 to $24.00. They have a “Market Perform” rating on the company.

NVIDIA (NVDA) had its price target lowered by FBR Capital from $23.00 to $19.00. They have a “Market Perform” rating on the company.

Sabra Healthcare Reit (SBRA) had its price target lowered by Stifel Nicolaus from $20.00 to $15.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (BBY) (GLW) (TLEO) (CNW) Ratings Maintained

Ratings on Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY), Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW), Taleo Corp (NASDAQ: TLEO) and Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW) reiterated by analysts.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) reiterated an “overweight” rating on Taleo Corp (TLEO).

Citigroup (NYSE:C) reiterated a “hold” rating on Corning Inc. (GLW).

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on of Con-way Inc. (CNW).

Sterne Agee reiterated a “buy” rating on Apple, Inc (AAPL).

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) reiterated a “buy” rating on Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY).

Apple closed Wednesday at $351.76, gaining $2.33, or 0.67 percent. Best Buy Co. ended the session at $32.00, dropping $0.24, or 0.74 percent. Corning closed at $18.24, down $0.07, or 0.38 percent. Taleo closed at $36.96, climbing $0.12, or 0.33 percent. Con-Way closed at $41.87, rising $2.24, or 5.65 percent.

Ratings on (BP) (BRS) (CNW) (LRCX) (NRP) Upgraded

Ratings on shares of BP PLC (NYSE: BP), Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE: BRS), Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), Lam Research Co. (NASDAQ: LRCX) and Natural Resource (NYSE: NRP) upgraded by analysts.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) upgraded shares of BP PLC (BP) from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) upgraded Bristow Group Inc. (BRS) from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating.

Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Con-way Inc. (CNW) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They have a price target of $46.00 on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgraded Lam Research Co. (LRCX) from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) upgraded Natural Resource (NRP) from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

Ex-Dividend for (ASR) (CF) (CNP) (CNW) (COL) on May 12

The Ex-dividend date for Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV (ASR), CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF), CenterPoint Energy Inc. (CNP), Con-way Inc. (CNW) and Rockwell Collins Inc. (COL) is on May 12, 2011

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV (ASR) pays a dividend of $2.55 with a yield of 4.30 percent.

CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) pays a dividend of $0.10 with a yield of 0.30 percent.

CenterPoint Energy Inc. (CNP) pays a dividend of $0.20 with a yield of 4.24 percent.

Con-way Inc. (CNW) pays a dividend of $0.10 with a yield of 1.06 percent.

Rockwell Collins Inc. (COL) pays a dividend of $0.24 with a yield of 1.50 percent.

Price Targets on (CNW) (ARO) (CBOE) (CHSI) (CI) Updated

Analysts updated their price targets on Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO), CBOE Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: CBOE), Catalyst Health Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHSI) and CIGNA Co. (NYSE: CI) today.

Dahlman Rose raised their price target on Con-way Inc. (CNW) from $38.00 to $44.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) cut their price target on Aeropostale, Inc. (ARO) to $20.00. They have a “sell” rating on the company.

Oppenheimer cut their price target on CBOE Holdings, Inc (CBOE) from $32.00 to $29.00. They have an “outperform” rating on the company.

FBR Capital raised their price target on Catalyst Health Solutions, Inc. (CHSI) from $62.00 to $68.00. They have an “outperform” rating on the company.

Oppenheimer raised their price target on CIGNA Co. (CI) from $52.00 to $54.00. They now have an “outperform” rating on the company.

Con-Way (CNW), Freeport (FCX), Southern Copper (SCCO), Goldman Sachs (GS) in Bearish Mode?

Con-Way (CNW), Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (FCX), and Southern Copper (SCCO) and Goldman Sachs all appear to have triggered shorts, suggesting they're in a bearish mode.

Yesterday’s sell-off resulted in technical damage in many individual names. I am seeing many potential distribution topping patterns preparing for further downside. Recently, I highlighted topping patterns in Con-Way (CNW), Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (FCX), and Southern Copper (SCCO), all have triggered as shorts and began their descent. Many individual names, such as Goldman Sachs, are in distribution mode with bearish setups, while several other names are only beginning to form distribution patterns. Results of bearish pattern triggers will play a crucial role in determining the markets outlook.

A broad-based sell-off took place yesterday in all the major market indexes, erasing up to two weeks worth of gains. Is the uptrend over? To determine the health of the current uptrend let's examine the characteristics that define the bullish trend in the SPDR S&P 500 (SPY). In addition, a potential distribution topping pattern in Goldman Sachs (GS) may be a few steps ahead of the markets. A trigger and follow-through of the GS pattern, and names in similar stages, can provide a roadmap to the future direction of the overall markets.

In September 2010, an intermediate uptrend began in the SPY. The defining characteristic of the bullish trend, in my opinion, is an ascending trend line (log scale) that began from the lows of August 31, 2010, with a second touch point on November 30, 2010. The line continued to extend higher and tested for a third time on January 28, 2011, holding. Currently, the 20-day simple moving average is aligned with the intermediate trend line, adding validity to this support area. Yesterday’s price action traded down to this level and held. If there is a confirmed break of this support level, provided by the trend line and moving average, the uptrend is over.




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