Carnival (CCL) (CME) (HDY) (HTLF) (NYX) Ratings, Price Targets

Carnival Co. (NYSE: CCL), CME Group Inc. (NYSE: CME), Hyperdynamics (NYSE: HDY), Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTLF) and NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) ratings and price targets.

Carnival Co. (CCL) was downgraded by Barclays Capital (NYSE:BCS) from an “Overweight” rating to an “Equal Weight” rating.

CME Group Inc. (CME) was downgraded by ISI Group from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Hyperdynamics (HDY) was downgraded by Howard Weil from an “Outperform” rating to a “Market Perform” rating. They have a price target of $4.00 on the company, down from $11.00.

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (HTLF) was downgraded by Sandler O’Neill from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) was upgraded by RBC Capital to a “Buy” rating.

Veolia (VE) (MNST) (NYX) (TNB) (UA) (VYFC) Ratings, Price Targets

Veolia Environnement (NYSE: VE), Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Thomas & Betts Co. (NYSE: TNB), Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UA) and Valley Financial (NASDAQ: VYFC) ratings and price targets.

Monster Beverage (MNST) was downgraded by CLSA from a “Buy” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) was downgraded by ISI Group from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Thomas & Betts Co. (TNB) was downgraded by Stifel Nicolaus from a “Buy” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Under Armour, Inc. (UA) was upgraded by Needham & Company from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $86.00 on the company.

Veolia Environnement (VE) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) from an “Underweight” rating to an “Equal Weight” rating.

Davenport initiated coverage on Valley Financial (VYFC). They placed a “Buy” rating on the company.

RadioShack (RSH) (NYX) (BXP) (CNO) (EXEL) (MDVN) Ratings, Price Targets

RadioShack (NYSE: RSH), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Boston Properties (NYSE: BXP), CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: CNO), Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXEL) and Medivation (NASDAQ: MDVN) ratings and price targets.

RadioShack (RSH) was downgraded by Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) from an “Outperform” rating to an “Underperform” rating.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) was upgraded by Credit Agricole to a “Buy” rating.

Imperial Capital initiated coverage on Boston Properties (BXP). They placed an “In-Line” rating on the company.

Evercore Partners initiated coverage on CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO). They placed an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) initiated coverage on Exelixis, Inc. (EXEL). They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Credit Suisse initiated coverage on Medivation (MDVN). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Cogent (CCOI) (GOL) (O) (NYX) (CL) (CRH) Upgraded

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ: CCOI), Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA (NYSE: GOL), Realty Income Corporation (NYSE: O), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE: CL) and CRH PLC (NYSE: CRH) upgraded by analysts.

Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA (GOL) was upgraded by Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) from a “Market Perform” rating to an “Outperform” rating.

Realty Income Corporation (O) was upgraded by RBC Capital from a “Sector Perform” rating to a “Top Pick” rating. They have a price target of $36.00 on the company.

Cogent Communications (CCOI) was upgraded by SunTrust (NYSE:STI) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) was upgraded by Argus from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $35.00 on the company.

Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) from an “Equal Weight” rating to an “Overweight” rating. They have a price target of $92.00 on the company.

CRH PLC (CRH) was upgraded by Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a “Sell” rating to a “Hold” rating.

Marathon (MRO) (AMT) (NYX) (TAP) (THC) EPS Estimates Changed

American Tower Corporation (NYSE: AMT), Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE: MRO), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Molson Coors Brewing (NYSE: TAP) and Tenet Healthcare Co. (NYSE: THC) EPS estimates adjusted by analysts.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) raised its EPS estimates on American Tower Corporation (AMT). They have a “Buy” rating and a price target of $63.00 on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) raised its EPS estimates on Marathon Oil Co. (MRO). They have a “Buy” rating and a price target of $38.00 on the company. That's dwon from the $40.00 price target they had on the company. UBS cited valuation as the catalyst behind the call.

Barclays Capital lowered its EPS estimates on NYSE Euronext (NYX). They have an “Overweight” rating and a price target of $38.00 on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) lowered its EPS estimates on Molson Coors Brewing (TAP). They have a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $50.00 on the company.

Goldman Sachs raised its EPS estimates on Tenet Healthcare Co. (THC). They have a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $7.00 on the company.

Ratings on (NYX) (PRM) (HPQ) (REG) (SPLS) Downgraded

Ratings on shares of NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX), Primedia Inc (NYSE: PRM), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), Regency Centers (NYSE: REG) and Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) were downgraded by analysts.

Credit Agricole downgraded NYSE Euronext (NYX) to an “underperform” rating.

Gabelli downgraded Primedia Inc (PRM) to a “sell” rating.

Susquehanna downgraded Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating.

Argus downgraded Regency Centers (REG) from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) downgraded Staples, Inc. (SPLS) from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.

Ratings on (CRARY) (ECT) (FXCM) (GDP) (NYX) Downgraded

Ratings on shares of Credit Agricole (OTC: CRARY), ECA Marcellus Trust (NYSE: ECT), FXCM Inc (NASDAQ: FXCM), Goodrich Petroleum Co. (NYSE: GDP) and NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) were downgraded by analysts.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) downgraded Credit Agricole (CRARY) from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating.

Oppenheimer downgraded ECA Marcellus Trust (ECT) from an “outperform” rating to a “perform” rating.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) downgraded FXCM Inc (FXCM) from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating. They have a price target of $7.00 on the company, down from $12.50.

Imperial Capital downgraded Goodrich Petroleum Co. (GDP) from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating.

Argus downgraded NYSE Euronext (NYX) from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.

Dividend Yields for (FII) (NYX) (BLK) (SLM) (NTRS)

Indicated dividend yields for Standard & Poor's 500 Index companies Federated Investors Inc (FII), NYSE Euronext (NYX), BlackRock Inc (BLK), SLM Corp (SLM) and Northern Trust Corp (NTRS).

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.

Federated Investors Inc (FII) has a dividend yield of 1.36 percent on a declared dividend of $3.73. The payout ratio is 72.6 percent.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) has a dividend yield of 3.00 percent on a declared dividend of $0.30. The payout ratio is 50.5 percent.

BlackRock Inc (BLK) has a dividend yield of 2.81 percent on a declared dividend of $1.38. The payout ratio is 46.4 percent.

SLM Corp (SLM) has a dividend yield of 2.41 percent on a declared dividend of $0.10. The payout ratio isna.

Northern Trust Corp (NTRS) has a dividend yield of 2.24 percent on a declared dividend of $0.28. The payout ratio is 44.9 percent.

Ratings on (MBFI) (NWL) (NYX) (RGC) Reiterated

Analysts reiterate ratings on MB Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: MBFI), Newell Rubbermaid (NYSE: NWL), NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) and Regal Entertainment (NYSE: RGC).

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) reiterated a “neutral” rating on MB Financial, Inc. (MBFI). They have a price target of $23.00 on the company.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) reiterated a “buy” rating on Newell Rubbermaid (NWL). They have a price target of $22.00 on the company.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) reiterated a “hold” rating on NYSE Euronext (NYX). They now have a price target of $39.00 on the company.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “overweight” rating on Regal Entertainment (RGC).

Chanos Long on (FMCN) (C) (NYX) (NDAQ) (RAX)

Jim Chanos has built his reputation on his short sales, but that has changed some, according to the latest filing of Kynikos Associates LP, which via its 13F form shows the company has taken long positions in a number of holdings, including Citigroup (NYSE:C) NYSE Euronext (NYSE:NYX), NASDAQ OMX (NASDAQ:NDAQ), Focus Media Holding Ltd (NASDAQ:FMCN) and Rackspace Hosting (NYSE:RAX).

This may be the first time Chanos's company has entered into long positions, suggesting a major shift in strategy and thinking.

It will bear watching over the months ahead to see if this is a long-term shift for the shorting legend.

There are numerous theories as to why Chanos has started going long, one of which is new investors may be pressing him to become more investment-neutral than in the past.

It'll be interesting to see if he offers up an explanation.

Top Ten Calls Recommended by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS)

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) released a list of their top ten calls in the financial sector, targeting those lagging behind the market in the midst of what they perceive as improving fundamentals.

They see the overall sector rising.

The 10 companies the options strategists at Goldman recommend are these: IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE), Allstate Corporation (NYSE:ALL), Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV), Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN), The Chubb Corporation (NYSE:CB), Moody's Corp. (NYSE:MCO), Progressive Corp. (NYSE:PGR), State Street Corp. (NYSE:STT), NYSE Euronext, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) and T. Rowe Price (Nasdaq:TROW).

IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. was trading at $117.87, up $1.49, or 1.28 percent, as of 12:14 PM EST. Allstate was at $30.98, up $ 0.03, or 0.10 percent. Travelers was at $55.42, up $0.08, or 0.14 percent. Franklin Resources was trading at $117.37, up $0.93, or 0.80 percent. Chubb was at $59.53, up $0.04, or 0.07 percent. Moody's was at $27.40, up $0.07, or 0.26 percent. Progressive was up to $20.62, gaining $0.18, or 0.88 percent. State Street moved up to $45.60, rising by $0.40, or 0.88 percent. NYSE Euronext was up to $29.62, gaining $0.27, or 0.92 percent. T.Rowe Price was trading at $63.31, up $0.53, or 0.84 percent.

All 10 companies were positive as of this writing.

NYSE Euronext (NYSE:NYX) Trading Volume Down

With expectations trading volumes on NYSE Euronext (NYSE:NYX) will drop significantly in December and for the quarter, Ticonderoga says they're maintaining their "Neutral" rating on the exchange.

Ticonderoga analyst says, "Our current 4Q10 EPS estimate stands at $0.41 compared with consensus of $0.45. Given quarter-to-date volume and FX trends, and our expectations for December (we are building in a 10-20% sequential decrease in volumes across NYX's businesses), we are comfortable with our current estimates. For 4Q10, we are building in total revenues of $970m and expenses of $441m. Our expense forecast represents a $22m sequential increase off of 3Q10 levels due to the impact of FX (-$7m), increased depreciation expenses (-$10m) due to a full quarter of the new data centers, and increased marketing expenses (-$5m in SG&A)."

NYSE Euronext was trading at $28.98, down by $0.07, or 0.24 percent.