UPGRADES
Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at BMO Capital – BMO Capital upgraded Kansas City Southern to Market Perform from Underperform due to an expected recovery in agriculture and coal volumes. Price target raised to $107 from $93
Merck (NYSE:MRK) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies – Jefferies upgraded Merck on expectations shareholder pressure will likely lead to restructuring. The firm raised its price target for shares to $54 from $48. Jefferies believes Merck could spin-off its Animal Health and Consumer Health businesses
Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) upgraded to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies – Jefferies upgraded Eli Lilly to Hold citing a lack of downside risk catalysts and the 3.6% dividend yield. The firm raised its price target for shares to $49 from $44
DOWNGRADES
Broadcom (NASDAQ:BRCM) downgraded at Susquehanna – As previously reported, Susquehanna downgraded Broadcom to Neutral from Positive. The firm downgraded share due to valuation. Price target is $39
Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies – Jefferies downgraded Align Technology citing valuation but raised its price target for shares to $38 from $36
HEADLINES
Tiffany’s (NYSE:TIF) Q1 EPS beat expectations by $0.18, coming in at $0.70, while revenue grew 9% to $895M as comparable-store sales rose 8%. By region, revenues in Asia-Pacific increased 15% to $223M, while those in Europe and the Americas climbed 6%. A mix shift to lower gross margin products cut into profitability during the quarter as SG&A expenses grew 8%. Tiffany sees FY13 EPS of $3.43-$3.53, unchanged from prior guidance.
Lloyds is reportedly accepting offers today for $8.7B in U.S. mortgage debt in what is the largest widely marketed sale of securitized debt for at least three years.
EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia plans to demand more compromises from Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) after he and his team have analyzed feedback from the company’s rivals over its proposals to settle anti-competitive complaints related to its search-engine practices. Almunia has also yet to decide whether to open a formal probe into Google’s Android operating system.
Having reported its largest annual profit in five years earlier this month, Toyota (NYSE:TM) has forecast that its FY 2014 net income will jump 42% to ¥1.37T ($13.4B). Meanwhile, the car maker intends to increase the total compensation paid to directors by 28% to ¥1.53B.
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