Fed Appears Ready to Stimulate

Although it could go either way, it's increasingly likely the Federal Reserve and Ben Bernanke are could act sooner rather than later in attempts to stimulate the economy with another round of quantitative easing.

The market responded to the news by jumping in the morning, pulling back as the day went on. The DJIA closed the day at 12,657.05, jumping 58.73, or 0.47 percent.

The NASDAQ didn't get much help, as Apple (AAPL) and Radio Shack (RSH) took big hits on disappointing earnings. It closed at 2,854.24, losing 8.57, or 0.31 percent.

For the S&P 500, it closed slightly down at $1,337.89, falling 0.42, or 0.03 percent.

Not unexpectedly, commodities jumped on the rising expectations of a sooner than expected stimulus, with gold, silver, copper and oil all settling up on the day.

Gold closed at $1,603, up $27.30, or 1.73 percent. Silver climbed to finish at $27.285, jumping $0.47, or 1.77 percent. Copper ended the session at $3.385, inching up $0.03, or 0.95 percent. Oil closed at $90.669998, up $0.61, or 0.68 percent.

The growing weakness of the U.S., European and Chinese economies has put pressure on the Fed to attempt to get the U.S. economy growing again, as the pace it's currently at isn't considered enough to strengthen it enough to grow on its own.

There is no longer a question of if the Fed will move, if some still believed that was the case (many oddly enough still do), but rather of how quickly to move and with what mechanism.

It's most likely it'll acquire mortgage-backed securities, but that's not a surety. Now that the economy is continuing to sputter, the Fed will probably attempt to make a statement by whatever means is uses to try to support the economy in a way that will inspire confidence. Anything too small would possibly be ignored or more detrimental than not doing anything at all.

For some time it was believed the Fed would wait until September before announcing any stimulus, but that is increasingly unlikely as each day goes by and pressure mounts for something to be done in light of its next meeting starting on July 31.

Now that the assumption the Fed will moved shored up the markets after three straight days of triple-digit losses, it's even more likely we'll see some action taken very quickly.

What is challenging for the Fed, and increasing the pressure on the institution is, do they wait until September and risk being perceived as weak and behind the times if the economy continues to tank, or do they wait for a couple of months to see which direction the economy goes.

I think the failure risk is too great for the Fed to wait. But we'll find out in a few days either way. My guess is they'll announce another round of stimulation next week.

Boyd (BYD) (ATML) (CODE) (AAPL) (ALR) (CTSH) (DIS) Ratings, Price Targets

Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD), Atmel (NASDAQ: ATML), Spansion Inc. (NASDAQ: CODE), Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Alere (NYSE: ALR), Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) and Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) had ratings and price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Nomura (NYSE:NMR) initiated coverage on Boyd Gaming (BYD). They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Atmel (ATML) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS). They have a price target of $12.00 on the company, up from $10.00.

Spansion Inc. (CODE) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Needham & Company.

Apple (AAPL) had its price target raised by Needham & Company from $540.00 to $620.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Alere (ALR) had its price target raised by Mizuho from $23.00 to $27.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Cognizant (CTSH) had its price target raised by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from $71.00 to $73.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Walt Disney (DIS) had its price target raised by Hilliard Lyons from $50.00 to $52.00. They have a “Long-Term Buy” rating on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (CSCO) (NOK) (EZCH) (NWSA) (THOR) (BYD) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Nokia (NYSE: NOK), EZchip (NASDAQ: EZCH), News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWSA), Thoratec (NASDAQ: THOR) and Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD) had ratings and price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Mizuho Securities initiated coverage on Apple (AAPL). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $635.00 on the company.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) had its “Outperform” rating reiterated by Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC)

Nokia (NOK) had its “Hold” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

EZchip (EZCH) had its price target raised by Auriga from $37.00 to $45.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

News Corp. (NWSA) had its price target raised by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) from $20.50 to $23.75. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Thoratec (THOR) had its price target raised by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from $33.00 to $34.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Boyd Gaming (BYD) was downgraded by Barclays Capital (NYSE:BCS) from an “Overweight” rating to an “Equal Weight” rating.

Apple (AAPL) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) ratings and price targets.

Apple (AAPL) had its “buy” rating reiterated by analysts

at Brigantine Advisors.

Apple had its “Buy” rating reiterated by ISI Group. They have a $525.00 price target on the stock.

Apple had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB).

Apple had its “Conviction Buy” rating reiterated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).

Apple had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Needham & Company.

Apple had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Auriga.

Apple had its “Outperform” rating reiterated by FBN Securities.

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

Apple (AAPL) (DTV) (KFT) (RIMM) (NFLX) (LNKD) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), DirecTV (NYSE: DTV), Kraft Foods (NASDAQ: KFT), Research In Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM), Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Linkedin (NASDAQ: LNKD) ratings and price targets.

DirecTV (DTV) was downgraded by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating.

Kraft Foods (KFT) had its price target raised by Stifel Nicolaus from $39.00 to $42.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Research In Motion (RIMM) had its “Neutral” rating reiterated by Sterne Agee.

Netflix (NFLX) had its “Market Perform” rating reiterated by Sanford C. Bernstein.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) initiated coverage on Linkedin (LNKD). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Apple (AAPL) had its price target raised by RBC Capital from $500.00 to $525.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Citigroup (C) (EBAY) (GOOG) (QCOM) (AAPL) (DIS) Ratings Reiterated

Citigroup (NYSE: C), eBay, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM), Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Citigroup (C) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Nomura (NYSE:NMR).

eBay, Inc. (EBAY) had its “Neutral” rating reiterated by Nomura.

Google Inc. (GOOG) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Jefferies Group (NYSE:JEF).

QUALCOMM, Inc. (QCOM) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

Walt Disney (DIS) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Citigroup. They have a price target of $42.00 on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (WFC) (WPI) (WYNN) (AMTD) (ANN) Ratings Reiterated

Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC), Watson Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NYSE: WPI), Wynn Resorts, Limited (NASDAQ: WYNN), TD Ameritrade (NASDAQ: AMTD) and AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) had its “Neutral” rating reiterated by Nomura (NYSE:NRM).

Watson Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (WPI) had its “Overweight” rating reiterated by Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC). They have a price target of $78.00 on the company.

Wynn Resorts, Limited (WYNN) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Nomura.

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

TD Ameritrade (AMTD) had its “Neutral” rating reiterated by Nomura.

AnnTaylor Stores (ANN) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Sterne Agee.

Apple (AAPL) (REX) (FPO) (NYX) (SIMO) (ADP) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Rex Stores (NYSE: REX), First Potomac Realty (NYSE: FPO), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Silicon Motion Technology Corp. (NASDAQ: SIMO) and Automatic Data Processing Incorporated (NYSE: ADP) ratings and price targets.

Apple (AAPL) had its “overweight” rating reiterated by Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC).

Rex Stores (REX) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating.

First Potomac Realty (FPO) had its price target lowered by RBC Capital from $19.00 to $16.00. They have an “outperform” rating on the company.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) was downgraded by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to a “market perform” rating.

Silicon Motion Technology Corp. (SIMO) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating.

Automatic Data Processing Incorporated (ADP) had its “neutral” rating reiterated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).

Apple (AAPL) (AMZN) (GOOG) (APD) (AYI) (BODY) Ratings Reiterated

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Air Products & Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE: APD), Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI) and Body Central Acquisition Co. (NASDAQ: BODY) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reiterated its "Conviction Buy" rating on Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Neutral" rating on Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN).

Stifel Nicolaus reiterated its "Hold" rating on Google Inc. (GOOG).

Jefferies Group (NYSE:JEF) reiterated its "Buy" rating on Air Products & Chemicals, Inc. (APD). They have a price target of $101.00 on the company.

Canaccord Genuity reiterated its "Buy" rating on Acuity Brands Inc. (AYI).

Oppenheimer (NYSE:OPY) reiterated its "Outperform" rating on Body Central Acquisition Co. (BODY). They have a price target of $27.00 on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (PNY) (SAP) (TEN) (APH) (ATML) Price Targets Changed

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY), SAP Aktiengesellschaft (NYSE: SAP), Tenneco Inc. (NYSE: TEN), Amphenol Co. (NYSE: APH) and Atmel (NASDAQ: ATML) had price targets adjusted by analysts.

Piedmont Natural Gas (PNY) had its price target raised by Barclays Capital (NYSE:BCS) from $29.00 to $31.00. They have an “Underweight” rating on the company.

SAP Aktiengesellschaft (SAP) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $70.00 to $66.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Tenneco Inc. (TEN) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $54.00 to $51.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its price target raised by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) from $520.00 to $550.00.

Amphenol Co. (APH) had its price target raised by RBC Capital from $50.00 to $55.00. They have a “Top Pick” rating on the company.

Atmel (ATML) had its price target lowered by FBR Capital from $14.00 to $12.50. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Plexus (PLXS) (PZN) (SANM) (AAPL) (KEM) (MED) Ratings Reiterated

Plexus (NASDAQ: PLXS), Pzena Investment Management Inc. (NYSE: PZN), Sanmina-SCI Co. (NASDAQ: SANM), Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), KEMET Co. (NYSE: KEM) and Medifast, Inc. (NYSE: MED) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reiterated its "Neutral" rating on Plexus (PLXS).

Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Sell" rating on Pzena Investment Management Inc. (PZN).

Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Neutral" rating on Sanmina-SCI Co. (SANM).

Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Conviction Buy" rating on Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) reiterated its "Neutral" rating on KEMET Co. (KEM).

Canaccord Genuity reiterated its "Hold" rating on Medifast, Inc. (MED).

Exxon (XOM) (AAPL) (BA) (VRX) (WOR) (FOLD) Ratings Reiterated

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA), Valeant Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: VRX), Worthington (NYSE: WOR) and Amicus Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: FOLD) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Jefferies Group (NYSE:JEF) reiterated its "Buy" rating on Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX).

Jefferies Group reiterated its "Hold" rating on Worthington (WOR).

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) reiterated its "Conviction Buy" rating on Exxon Mobil (XOM).

Needham & Company reiterated its "Buy" rating on Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) reiterated its "Neutral" rating on The Boeing Company (BA).

Canaccord Genuity reiterated its "Buy" rating on Amicus Therapeutics, Inc. (FOLD).

Apple (AAPL) (CCE) (BCE) (ECT) (EPD) (AKAM) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Coca-Cola Enterprises (NYSE: CCE), BCE Inc. (NYSE: BCE), ECA Marcellus Trust (NYSE: ECT), Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) and Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM) ratings and price targets.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its “conviction buy” rating reiterated by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).

Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) is now covered by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB). They have a “buy” rating on the firm.

BCE Inc. (BCE) had its price target raised by BMO Capital Markets to $44.00.

ECA Marcellus Trust (ECT) was downgraded by Oppenheimer from a “perform” rating to an “underperform” rating. They have a price target of $20.00 on the firm.

Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) was downgraded by Tudor Pickering from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating.

Akamai Technologies (AKAM) was upgraded by Jefferies Group from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating. They have a price target of $36.00 on the firm, up from $21.00.

Apple (AAPL) (ANFGY) (BLK) (BMR) (MCHP) (USG) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), Antofagasta plc (NASDAQ: ANFGY), BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE: BLK), BioMed Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: BMR), Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP) and USG Co. (NYSE: USG) ratings and price targets.

Needham & Company reiterated its "Buy" rating on Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

Antofagasta plc (ANFGY) was downgraded by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Sell” rating.

BlackRock, Inc. (BLK) was downgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to a “Buy” rating.

BioMed Realty Trust, Inc. (BMR) was downgraded by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) from an “Overweight” rating to an “Equal Weight” rating.

Pacific Crest initiated coverage on Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP). They placed a “Sector Perform” rating on the company.

USG Co. (USG) was upgraded by CL King from a “Neutral” rating to a “Strong-Buy” rating.

Linkedin (LNKD) (CMC) (MDCA) (OZM) (AAPL) (NFLX) Ratings Reiterated

Linkedin Co. (NASDAQ: LNKD), Commercial Metals (NYSE: CMC), MDC Partners Inc. (NASDAQ: MDCA), Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC (NYSE: OZM), Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Commercial Metals (CMC) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Citigroup (NYSE:C).

Linkedin Co. (LNKD) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Bank of America (NYSE:BAC).

MDC Partners Inc. (MDCA) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB). They have a price target $21.00 on the company.

Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC (OZM) was given price target of $13.00 by JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM).

BTIG reiterated its "Buy" rating on Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

Needham & Company reiterated its "Underperform" rating on Netflix, Inc. (NFLX).

Apple (AAPL) (GD) (LVS) (COOL) (GE) (T) Get New Coverage

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), Majesco Entertainment Co. (NASDAQ: COOL), General Electric (NYSE: GE) and AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) getting new coverage from analysts.

General Dynamics (GD) is now covered by Sterne Agee. They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) is now covered by Compass Point. They placed a “sell” rating and a $35.00 price target on the company.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) is now covered by Auriga. They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

Majesco Entertainment Co. (COOL) is now covered by Rodman & Renshaw. They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $7.00 on the company.

General Electric (GE) is now covered by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS). They placed an “Overweight” rating on the company.

AT&T Inc. (T) is now covered by Guggenheim. They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (ACAD) (TXI) (VVUS) (XRTX) (AA) Ratings Reiterated

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACAD), Texas Industries (NYSE: TXI), VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS), Xyratex Ltd. (NASDAQ: XRTX) and Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ACAD) had its “Hold” rating reiterated by Needham & Company.

Texas Industries (TXI) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Jefferies Group (NYSE:JEF).

VIVUS, Inc. (VVUS) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Needham & Company.

Xyratex Ltd. (XRTX) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Brean Murray.

Alcoa Inc. (AA) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by Dahlman Rose.

Apple (AAPL) (RFMD) (FLIR) (AYI) (BAC) (BMY) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), RF Micro Device (NASDAQ: RFMD), FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR), Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) ratings and price targets.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its “buy” rating reiterated by Canaccord Genuity.

RF Micro Device (RFMD) had its “buy” rating reiterated by Needham & Company.

FLIR Systems, Inc. (FLIR) is now covered by Sterne Agee. They have a “neutral” rating on the company.

Acuity Brands Inc. (AYI) was downgraded by Wedbush from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating.

Bank of America (BAC) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating. They have a price target of $5.75 on the company.

Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (BMY) was upgraded by Credit Agricole to an “outperform” rating.

Apple (AAPL) (YHOO) (LVS) (MMM) (S) (VZ) Ratings, Price Targets

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO), Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), 3M Company (NYSE: MMM), Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) and Verizon (NYSE: VZ) ratings and price targets.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its “Buy” rating reiterated by BTIG.

Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) had its “Hold” rating reiterated by Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB).

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) is now covered by Compass Point. They placed a “Sell” rating and a price target of $35.00 on the company.

3M Company (MMM) is now covered by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS). They placed an “Equal Weight” rating and a price target of $90.00 on the company.

Sprint Nextel (S) is now covered by Guggenheim. They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Verizon (VZ) had its price target raised by Mizuho from $41.00 to $44.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Apple (AAPL) (BAC) (THRX) (TRIP) (VZ) (CME) Price Targets Changed

Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Theravance, Inc. (NASDAQ: THRX), TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP), Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and CME Group Inc. (NYSE: CME) had price targets on them adjusted by analysts.

Apple, Inc. (AAPL) had its price target raised by BTIG Research from $550.00 to $580.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Bank of America (BAC) had its price target lowered by Citigroup (NYSE:C) to $8.00.

Theravance, Inc. (THRX) had its price target raised by Piper Jaffray (NYSE:PJC) to $35.00.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (TRIP) had its price target lowered by Benchmark Co. from $33.00 to $31.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Verizon (VZ) had its price target raised by Mizuho from $41.00 to $44.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

CME Group Inc. (CME) had its price target lowered by Stifel Nicolaus from $325.00 to $280.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.