Humana (HUM) (LVS) (DIS) (LOW) (NWSA) (PEP) (RATE) Ratings, Price Targets

Humana (NYSE: HUM), Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS), Lowe’s (NYSE: LOW), News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWSA), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) and Bankrate (NASDAQ: RATE) had ratings and price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Humana (HUM) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Jefferies Group (NYSE:JEF).

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).

Walt Disney (DIS) had its price target raised by Wunderlich from $39.00 to $43.00. They have a “Hold” rating on the company.

Lowe’s (LOW) had its price target raised by Longbow Research from $29.00 to $33.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

News Corp. (NWSA) had its price target raised by Wedbush from $20.00 to $21.00.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) had its price target raised by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) to $72.00.

Bankrate (RATE) was downgraded by Stifel Nicolaus from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

PepsiCo (PEP) (SUMR) (PAA) (GPK) (PDLI) (KITD) Ratings, Price Targets

PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), Summer Infant (NASDAQ: SUMR), Plains (NYSE: PAA), Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE: GPK), PDL BioPharma (NASDAQ: PDLI) and Kit Digital (NASDAQ: KITD) ratings and price targets.

Summer Infant (SUMR) had its “buy” rating reiterated by Gilford Securities.

Plains (PAA) had its price target raised by Wunderlich from $73.00 to $79.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Graphic Packaging Holding (GPK) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating.

PDL BioPharma (PDLI) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating.

PepsiCo (PEP) was downgraded by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.

Kit Digital (KITD) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating.

3M (MMM) (ROK) (MURGY) (CRM) (KO) (PEP) (ACN) Ratings, Price Targets

3M (NYSE:MMM), Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK), Munich Re (OTC:MURGY), Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM), Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP) and Accenture (NYSE:ACN) ratings and price targets.

Rockwell Automation (ROK) was upgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from a "Neutral" rating to a "Buy" rating.

Munich Re (OTC:MURGY) was upgraded by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from a "Neutral" rating to an "Outperform" rating.

Salesforce.com (CRM) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) to a long Research Tactical Idea.

UBS downgraded Coca-Cola (KO) from a "Buy" rating to a "Neutral" rating.

UBS downgraded PepsiCo (PEP) from a "Buy" rating to a "Neutral" rating.

3M (MMM) was downgraded by Goldman Sachs from a "Neutral" rating to a "Sell" rating.

Accenture (ACN) was downgraded by Goldman Sachs from a "Buy" rating to a "Neutral" rating.

PepsiCo (PEP) (DPS) (GIII) (KO) (PTX) (STZ) (TAP) Get New Coverage

PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE: DPS), G-III Apparel (NASDAQ: GIII), The Coca Cola Co (NYSE: KO), Pernix Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (NYSE: PTX), Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE: STZ) and Molson Coors Brewing (NYSE: TAP) getting new coverage from analysts.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) initiated coverage on Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (DPS). They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Standpoint Research initiated coverage on G-III Apparel (GIII). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $34.00 on the company.

Bank of America initiated coverage on The Coca Cola Co (KO). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

ank of America initiated coverage on PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Pernix Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (PTX). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Bank of America initiated coverage on Constellation Brands, Inc. (STZ). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $23.00 on the company.

Bank of America initiated coverage on Molson Coors Brewing (TAP). They placed an “Underperform” rating and a price target of $43.00 on the company.

PepsiCo (PEP) (PWR) (PXD) (RNST) Downgraded

PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Quanta Services, Inc. (NYSE: PWR), Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD) and Renasant Corp. (NASDAQ: RNST) were downgraded by analysts.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) was downgraded by Janney Montgomery Scott from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Quanta Services, Inc. (PWR) was downgraded by Robert W. Baird from an “Outperform” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $20.00 on the company, down from $27.00.

Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) was downgraded by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating. They have a price target of $100.00 on the company.

Renasant Corp. (RNST) was downgraded by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

PepsiCo (PEP) (DK) (NSC) (FRX) (LSCC) (HAS) Price Targets Changed

PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Delek US Hldg Inc (NYSE: DK), Norfolk Southern Corp. (NYSE: NSC), Forest Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE: FRX), Lattice Semiconductor (NASDAQ: LSCC) and Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS) had their price targets adjusted by analysts.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) had its price target lowered by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to $71.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Delek US Hldg Inc. (DK) had its price target raised by Barclays Capital from $16.00 to $18.00. They have an “Equal Weight” rating on the company.

Norfolk Southern Corp. (NSC) had its price target lowered by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from $82.50 to $74.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Forest Laboratories, Inc. (FRX) had its price target lowered by UBS AG from $40.00 to $34.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Lattice Semiconductor (LSCC) had its price target lowered by Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) to $6.50.

Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) had its price target lowered by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from $46.00 to $38.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

GT Solar (SOLR) (PAAS) (PEP) (REV) (SO) (EW) Dowgraded

GT Solar International, Inc. (NASDAQ: SOLR), Pan American Silver Corp (NASDAQ: PAAS), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Revlon Incorporated (NYSE: REV), Southern Co (NYSE: SO) and Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE: EW) downgraded by analysts.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) was downgraded by Canaccord Genuity from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) downgraded Southern Co (SO) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Sell” rating.

GT Solar International, Inc. (SOLR) was downgraded by Credit Agricole from an “Outperform” rating to an “Underperform” rating.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) was downgraded by Goldman Sachs from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $74.00 on the company.

Edwards Lifesciences (EW) was downgraded by Rodman & Renshaw from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Underperform” rating. They have a price target of $66.00 on the company.

Revlon Incorporated (REV) was downgraded by BMO Capital Markets from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating.

Whirlpool (WHR) (MS) (TCB) (PENN) (SVN) (PEP) Price Targets Changed

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), TCF Financial Co. (NYSE: TCB), Penn National Gaming (NASDAQ: PENN), 7 Days Group Holdings Ltd (NYSE: SVN) and PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) price targets adjusted by analysts.

Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) had its price target lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) to $82.00.

TCF Financial Co. (TCB) had its price target lowered by RBC Capital from $18.00 to $16.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

7 Days Group Holdings Ltd (SVN) had its price target raised by Wedbush to $119.00.

PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) had its price target lowered by UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) from $82.00 to $79.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Penn National Gaming (PENN) had its price target raised by Jefferies (NYSE: JEF) to $51.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Morgan Stanley (MS) had its price target raised by UBS AG from $25.00 to $33.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

PepsiCo (PEP) (PM) (NYB) (NCR) (HGSI) (IR) Price Targets Changed

PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Philip Morris (NYSE: PM), New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: NYB), NCR Corp. (NYSE: NCR), Human Genome Sciences (NASDAQ: HGSI) and Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR) price targets adjusted by analysts.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) lowered its price target on PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) to $75.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target on Philip Morris (PM) from $74.00 to $78.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

FBR Capital cut its price target on New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYB) $19.00 to $17.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) raised its price target on NCR Corp. (NCR) to $25.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

RBC Capital lowered its price target on Human Genome Sciences (HGSI) from $38.00 to $32.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) slashed its price target on Ingersoll-Rand (IR) from $50.00 to $45.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Coverage on (ONNN) (OXM) (PEP) (PM) Initiated

Coverage on ON Semiconductor (NASDAQ: ONNN), Oxford Industries (NYSE: OXM), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) and Philip Morris (NYSE: PM) was initiated by analysts.

Susquehanna initiated coverage on ON Semiconductor (ONNN). They placed a “neutral” rating on the company.

Brean Murray initiated coverage on Oxford Industries (OXM). They placed a “buy” rating and a price target of $44.00 on the company.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) initiated coverage on PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP). They placed a “market perform” rating and a price target of $71.00 on the company.

Wells Fargo & Co. initiated coverage on Philip Morris (PM). They placed an “outperform” rating and a price target of $75.00 on the company.

Ratings on (NUAN) (OMER) (PEP) (SD) Reiterated

Ratings on Nuance Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN), Omeros Corp (NASDAQ: OMER), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) and SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) were reiterated by analysts.

Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on Nuance Communications Inc. (NUAN). They have a price target of $25.00 on the company.

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) reiterated a “hold” rating on Omeros Corp (OMER). They have a price target of $6.00 on the company.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) reiterated an “overweight” rating on PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP). They have a price target of $82.00 on the company.

Global Hunter Securities reiterated a “neutral” rating on SandRidge Energy Inc. (SD).

Dividends of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (CPK), Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH), CSX Corporation (CSX), PepsiCo Inc. (PEP) and Domtar Corporation (UF

Dividends of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (CPK), Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH), CSX Corporation (CSX), PepsiCo Inc. (PEP) and Domtar Corporation (UFS) recently raised.

Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (CPK) increased its dividend to $0.345 per share, a 4.6 percent boost. The quarterly dividend is payable July 5, 2011 to all shareholders of record at the close of business on June 15, 2011. The yield is 3.4 percent.

Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH) increased its dividend to $0.215 per share, a 10 percent boost. The quarterly dividend is payable on July 15 to shareholders of record on July 1. The yield is 1.9 percent.

CSX Corporation (CSX) increased its dividend to $0.36 per share, a 38 percent boost. The quarterly dividend is payable on June 15, 2011 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 31, 2011. The yield is 1.9 percent.

PepsiCo Inc. (PEP) increased its dividend to $0.515 per share. The quarterly dividend is payable on June 15, 2011 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 31, 2011. The yield is 3.0 percent.

Domtar Corporation (UFS) increased its dividend to $0.35 per share, a 40 percent boost. The quarterly dividend is payable on June 15, 2011 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 31, 2011. The yield is 1.5 percent.

Ratings on (MHLD) (PEP) (POM) (PRIM) (QKLS) Reiterated by Analysts Today

Analysts reiterated their ratings on Maiden Holdings, Ltd. (NASDAQ: MHLD), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Potomac Electric Pow (NYSE: POM), Primoris Services Corp (NASDAQ: PRIM) and Qkl Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: QKLS) today.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc reiterated an “outperform” rating on Maiden Holdings, Ltd. (MHLD).

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reiterated a “buy” rating on PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP). They have a price target of $83.00 on the company.

Wunderlich reiterated a “hold” rating on Potomac Electric Pow (POM). They now have a price target of $19.00 on the company, up from $18.00.

Wunderlich reiterated a “neutral” rating on Primoris Services Corp (PRIM). They have a price target of $10.00 on the company.

Global Hunter Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on Qkl Stores Inc. (QKLS).

Ratings on (NRP) (OKS) (PEP) (PLX) (PVA) Upgraded

Ratings on Natural Resource (NYSE: NRP), Oneok Partners LP (NYSE: OKS), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Protalix BioTherapeutics Inc. (NYSE: PLX) and Penn Virginia (NYSE: PVA) upgraded by analysts today.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) upgraded Natural Resource (NRP) from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) upgraded Oneok Partners LP (OKS) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.

Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) upgraded PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) to an “outperform” rating.

Hapoalim Securities upgraded Protalix BioTherapeutics Inc. (PLX) from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating.

Canaccord Genuity upgraded Penn Virginia (PVA) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.

Price Targets on (PCLN) (PEP) (V) (ADSK) (AGP) Raised by Analysts

Priceline (NASDAQ: PCLN), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) and AMERIGROUP Co. (NYSE: AGP) get price targets raised today by analysts.

ThinkEquity raised their price target on Priceline (PCLN) to $630.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) to $76.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) raised their price target on Visa Inc. (V) to $88.00. They have a “buy” rating on the company.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) raised their price target on Autodesk (ADSK) from $42.00 to $47.00. They have a “hold” rating on the company.

Oppenheimer raised their price target on AMERIGROUP Co. (AGP) from $65.00 to $75.00. They have an “outperform” rating on the company.

Dividend Yields for (GIS) (PEP) (KO) (DPS) (SLE)

Indicated dividend yields for Standard & Poor's 500 Index companies General Mills Inc (GIS), PepsiCo Inc (PEP), Coca-Cola Co (KO), Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS) and Sara Lee Corp (SLE).

These dividend data indicate dividend yields of companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index as of Saturday, April 30. The yield is determined by taking the latest declared dividend, annualized and divided by the price of the stock. Payout ratios are calculated based on latest quarterly dividend paid divided by earnings.

General Mills Inc (GIS) has a dividend yield of 2.90 percent on a declared dividend of $0.28. The payout ratio is 46.2 percent.

PepsiCo Inc (PEP) has a dividend yield of 2.79 percent on a declared dividend of $0.48. The payout ratio is 66.5 percent.

Coca-Cola (KO) has a dividend yield of 2.79 percent on a declared dividend of $0.47. The payout ratio is 56.7 percent.

Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc (DPS) has a dividend yield of 2.55 percent on a declared dividend of $0.25. The payout ratio is 49.0 percent.

Sara Lee Corp (SLE) has a dividend yield of 2.40 percent on a declared dividend of $0.12. The payout ratio is 69.9 percent.

Morgan Stanley (MS) Likes (MSFT)(BAC)(AKS)(PEP), Among Laggards

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) released a list of stock laggards today in a report, with parameters of trailing their respective sectors by at least 10 percent over the last six months.

Among the shares they recommend buying in the group are Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL), down 15.1%; Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), down 7.6%; AK Steel Holdings (NYSE:AKS), down 15%; PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP), down 10.9%; Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR), down 15.7%; Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), down 14.2%; and Talbots (NYSE:TLB), down 67.1%.

All of the stocks listed above have ratings of "Equal Weight" or "Overweight."

Morgan Stanley said a strategy of acquiring only laggards — rebalancing every month to buy the worst-performing quintile in the S&P 1500 on a trailing six-month basis — would have resulted in a 60% gain since January 2007, better than the S&P 500.




Source

Kellogg (NYSE:K), General Mills (NYSE:GIS), Sara Lee (NYSE:SLE), Pepsico (NYSE:PEP) Good Investments

The branded food industry, represented by companies like Kellogg's (NYSE:K), General Mills (NYSE:GIS), Sara Lee (NYSE:SLE) and Pepsico (NYSE:PEP), are going to struggle for some time, as rising food prices will pressure margins, and even some boosts in food prices will be risky in light of people having the option of returning to generic food labels.

Increasing food demand and some weather conditions have resulted in the price of food skyrocketing, and as far as food demand goes, that isn't going to go away for a long time to come.

So where does that leave the branded food companies? In a very weak place. There's little they can do to combat the situation, and only raising prices can help them in their fight against shrinking margins and earnings, which is a limited option at best, and one they can only take so far.

Far better agricultural or food plays would be futures for some, and in those providing fertilizer and machinery to farmers. Food companies are going to be under immense pressure, and there is no doubt over the long term their business models will be questioned.

Other food areas that need to be watched closely are meat providers and restaurants, which will struggle in a very similar way as food companies, although restaurants may have some more options because not all food will rise, and they could spread price increases across the overall meal with not as much negative feedback.

Grocery store prices are watched on an individual item basis when prices are up, and shoppers quickly respond by going to a different item or category, such as generic mentioned above.

John Deere (NYSE:DE), Potash Corp. (NYSE:POT), Monsanto (NYSE:MON) Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) and Agrium (NYSE:AGU) are all solid plays whose products will be required to serve the growing demand for food, no matter what the end-product prices will be at the store.

Companies like these can pass input prices onto farmers, farmers onto processors and processors onto food companies. At that point, the limitations of the market come in, and there is less that can be done at that level than those before it.

That's not to say there aren't pressures below that level, as Monsanto found out with farmers who gravitated toward seeds from DuPont (NYSE:DD) when they felt the seed prices of Monsanto were too high. That was even with Monsanto having a superior seed, as far as measured by the number of traits.

All of that is part of the dynamic, but in the end, food companies are handed the least flexible situation, and will have the bulk of the challenge in how to overcome shrinking margins.

P&G (NSYE:PG), PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP) Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO), Philip Morris (NYSE:PM) Top Consumer Staples Picks of Goldman (NYSE:GS)

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) is starting to like the consumer staples sector better, and their top picks include P&G (NSYE:PG), PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP), Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and Philip Morris (NYSE:PM).

Of all of this is predicated on the assumption there will be a global and U.S. recovery, none of which are certain by any means.

It also appears brands are pulling back on their battle, which could boost margins and earnings for the companies.

All Goldman could say about the condition of the U.S. economy was that it's "less bad" than it has been; not a great generator of confidence.

The top picks of Goldman based on the assumption the U.S. economy will recover, are Church & Dwight (NYSE:CHD), P&G (PG) and PepsiCo (PEP).

If things go well economically across the globe, Goldman likes Coca-Cola Company (KO) and Philip Morris International (PM).

Believing 2011 will be a strong year for acquisitions, Goldman sees Hansen (Nasdaq:HNSN), Lorillard (NYSE:LO) and Mead Johnson (NYSE:MJN) as "Buys."

Finally, assuming inflationary conditions, their favorite in the sector is General Mills (NYSE:GIS).

Proctor & Gamble were trading at $64.89, up $0.85, or 1.34 percent, as of 1:03 PM Est. Pepsico was trading at $66.66, up $0.33, or 0.50 percent. Coca-Cola was at $63.00, up $0.31, or 0.49 percent. Philip Morris was trading at $56.48, up $0.46, or 0.82 percent.

Wimm-Bill-Dann (NYSE:WBD) Soars on Pepsico (NYSE:PEP) Acquisiton Agreement

Shares of Wimm-Bill-Dann Dairy & Juice Co. (NYSE:WBD) soared on the news PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE:PEP) has agreed to acquire the majority of shares in the company for $3.8 billion, giving them controlling interest.

This move will place Pepsico as the No. 1 juice and dairy company in Russia, bypassing nemesis Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) for the spot.

The price paid for the shares will equal 66 percent of Wimm-Bill-Dann, with plans to acquire the rest, although Pepsi will have to wait to see if they receive government approval.

Based on the last month, PepsiCo paid a premium of 32 percent over the daily average share price for Wimm-Bill-Dann.

PepsiCo said the deal should add another 8 cents to the EPS of the company beginning in 2012.

Wimm-Bill-Dann was trading at $31.20, gaining $6.70, or 27.35 percent at 2:09 PM EST. PepsiCo was at $64.88, rising by $0.75, or 1.14 percent.