Ratings on (ACC) (AYI) (BDX) (BNPQY) (BSTC) Upgraded

Ratings on shares of American Campus Communities, Inc. (NYSE: ACC), Acuity Brands Inc (NYSE: AYI), Becton Dickinson And Co (NYSE: BDX), BNP Paribas (NASDAQ: BNPQY) and BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: BSTC) were upgraded by analysts.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) upgraded American Campus Communities, Inc. (ACC) from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

Canaccord Genuity upgraded Acuity Brands Inc (AYI) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgraded Becton Dickinson And Co (BDX) from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

BNP Paribas upgraded BNP Paribas (BNPQY) from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating.

Hapoalim Securities upgraded BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. (BSTC) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They have a price target of $27.00 on the company.

Ardea Biosciences (NASDAQ:RDEA) Soars on RDEA594 Data

Shares of Ardea Biosciences (NASDAQ:RDEA) skyrocketed on Friday on news their Phase IIb combination study of RDEA594 with allopurinol revealed positive results.

Global Hunter noted, "RDEA announced statistically significant RDEA594 data from the Phase IIb combination study with allopurinol in patients refractory to allopurinol therapy. All three dose groups of RDEA594 produced significant reductions in serum uric acid (sUA) levels compared to allopurinol alone (p<0.0001) and increased the proportion of patients with sUA<6 mg/dL (p<0.0001). Eighty-nine percent of patients responded to the combination of RDEA594 600 mg plus allopurinol. The drug was well tolerated with no serious adverse events (SAEs). We continue to believe that RDEA594 holds a competitive edge over other gout therapies with its once-daily oral dosing, its potential utility as add-on use and its strong efficacy and relatively benign safety profile."

Global Hunter Securities maintains a "Buy" rating on Ardea Biosciences, which closed Friday at $28.66, gaining $2.57, or 9.85 percent. Global boosted their price target from $27 to $30 on the company.