Analyst Upgrades

• HSBC upgraded Massey Energy (MEE) to overweight from neutral based on improved 2011 pricing power given industry supply-side discipline. Despite the upgrade, the firm cuts its price target to $40 from $54.
• Needham upgraded Blue Coat Systems (BCSI) to buy from hold following yesterday's announcement that Michael J. Borman has been named the new CEO. The firm has a $27 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Teekay Offshore Partners (TOO) to buy from hold after the company announced shuttle tanker contracts to reflect improved operating performance. The firm raised its target for shares to $26 from $15.
• Prosperity Bancshares (PRSP) was upgraded to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Ceradyne (CRDN) was upgraded to buy from hold at Benchmark Co.
• CTC Media (CTCM) was upgraded to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.

Just back in March, Research In Motion's (RIMM) shares were over $75 and looking solid. But now the shares are below $48. True, one reason for the fall is the market instability. Yet the fact remains that RIM has also had some missteps and its BlackBerry offerings are coming under pressure from rivals like Apple's (AAPL) iPhone and even Google's (GOOG) mobile Android operating system.

But RIM is fighting back. And it looks like a key to the strategy is to rev up acquisitions. For example, this week RIM agreed to acquire Cellmania (the price tag was not disclosed).

Analyst Upgrades

• Goldman upgraded Republic Services (RSG) to buy from neutral and raised its price target to $34 from $32. The firm cites valuation for the upgrade.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded MeadWestvaco (MWV) to buy from hold due to valuation and keeps a $29 price target for shares.
• UBS upgraded Symantec (SYMC) to buy from neutral.
• Lloyds Banking (LYG) upgraded to add from neutral at WestLB.
• Ternium (TX) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.

Over the past few years, Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM) has been playing defense. It's certainly a terrible strategy in light of its rivals, which include Apple, Inc. (AAPL) and Google, Inc. (GOOG). As a result, the stock price for RIM has been lackluster. Unfortunately, it looks like things will only get worse.

Consider that it is only now that RIM is thinking about buying a mobile advertising network (according to a report from the Wall Street Journal). Of course, Apple has already entered the business with its $250 million purchase of Quattro Wireless and Google shelled out $750 million for AdMob.

While Apple's (AAPL) iPad has been a smashing hit, there is an onslaught of competitors gunning for the market. These include Windows 7 slates and also $35 Indian tablets. There's even buzz that Research In Motion (RIMM) will come out with the BlackPad.

So, to keep up its lead, Apple is working furiously to build supply as well as penetrate new markets. And yes, it looks like the company will move into China, perhaps as early as next month. To this end, China Unicom (CHU) will be the exclusive carrier for the iPad. This will also include the distribution of the highly popular iPhone 4.

PCWorld reported that Research In Motion Limited (RIMM) is cutting the price for its new BlackBerry Torch, lowering the new handset's price to $99 from $199.

This is not a good sign for the telecommunications company, as it indicates that the latest iteration of its CrackBerry device is already lagging behind its competitors mere weeks into its existence. Complaints abound about the Torch, which some say was basically just like older versions and will not be enough to pull other smartphone users from their devices.

First things first, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia are not banning the BlackBerry device produced by Research in Motion Limited (RIMM). What is being suspended is BlackBerry mobile services like e-mail and text messaging. The supposed ban will start in October.

This ban stems from a dispute between the UAE and RIM concerning RIM's encrypted data system. The system makes government monitoring of data more difficult. The problem for RIM is that such a move could be followed by other countries in the region, as Kuwait and Bahrain have also raised concerns over the data encryption.

Tech firm Research in Motion (RIMM) has advanced nearly 3% this morning, thanks mainly to its schedule. The company has scheduled an event for next Tuesday in New York City and -- although no details have been released -- many investors are jumping to the conclusion that the Canadian firm will be showcasing the new operating system for its BlackBerry line of smartphones. There are also rumors swirling that a new handset with a slide-out keypad will be introduced. It is these rumors that have the stock trading higher.

Apple's (AAPL) buzz machine continues to crowd-out rivals like Research in Motion (RIMM) and Nokia (NOK). Yet, Google's (GOOG) Android is still able to stand out -- and get more and more traction in the market.

For example, this mobile operating system is seeing a whopping 160,000 activations every day. In fact, this growth helped supercharge HTC's latest quarter, with a 63% spike in revenues to $1.88 billion. At the same time, Motorola (MOT) and Verizon (VZ) are getting ready to launch the Droid X. And yes, this device is getting strong reviews.

Research in Motion (RIMM) shareholders may be in for a bumpy Friday after the company fell short of sales estimates in its Thursday evening earnings report. But first, the good news. Fiscal first-quarter profit rose almost 20% to $769 million, or $1.38 per share, up from $643 million ($1.12) in the year-ago period. Analysts were targeting per-share earnings of $1.34.

Quarterly revenue, however, rose 24% to $4.24 billion, falling short of the $4.35 billion expected by analysts. While the BlackBerry smart phone remains a top choice, especially among business men and women, competition is closing in from Apple's(AAPL) iPhone, in all of its incarnations, as well as Motorola's (MOT) Droid. And the new BlackBerry models just don't seem to be coming to market as quickly as its rivals. While increased competition is no fun, the number of smart phone users globally is actually increasing -- and its a market that is still largely untapped (hard to believe if you live in America).

Unexpectedly, the shares of Research In Motion (RIMM), which I first wrote about on May 5, 2009 at a price of $77.07, formed a long-term double-bottom at/near $54 after rising to $75 earlier in 2010, but I still like the business model, for the following reasons.

Look for RIMM's 2010 revenue to jump 35-40% on strong sales of BlackBerry wireless e-mail devices -- a device that has become the standard in large corporations / public institutions, and that has started to gain traction in the consumer segment. Unit sales and subscriber growth remain very good, but average selling prices are likely to trend lower.

Research in Motion (RIMM) shares closed down Wednesday, under-performing the broader market, which finished near break even. RIMM didn't report any news of its own accord, but investors likely reacted to an ill-received earnings guidance from mobile-phone peer Nokia Corporation (NOK). A large-scale options trader evidently used yesterday's pullback as an opportunity to scoop up some longer-dated call options.

Early yesterday, a block of around 7,000 out-of-the-money January 85 calls hit the tape for $1.45 per contract ($145 apiece), for a total premium of slightly more than $1 million paid. While open interest is already 10,000 at this strike, it appears these calls were bought to open, judging from an increase in implied volatility (and the fact that these options have more than six months until expiration).

According to the Wall Street Journal, Canadian firm Research in Motion Limited (RIMM) is preparing new devices and software to compete with Apple's (AAPL) iPhone and iPad. RIM's offering reportedly has a slide-out keyboard and a touch screen and works much like the iPhone as far as swiping through screens and expanding images by touch. In addition, the communications firm is toying with a tablet as a larger-screen BlackBerry phone.

RIM will not comment on the Journal story, as it is considered rumor and speculation. However, should the firm's new products come to fruition they would be available around the end of the year. RIM continues as a leader in the global smartphone market, but it is losing ground in North America thanks to AAPL's iPhone and iPad.

Google (GOOG) and its Android operating system is giving Apple (AAPL) and its iconic iPhone a serious run for the money right now. Nearly twice as many consumers are using Android-based phones now compared with three months ago, according to a recent survey by ChangeWave Research.

That's no fun for Apple, of course, but survey results show that the tech giant is still holding its own with high customer satisfaction and a larger share of the market. AAPL isn't going down anytime soon -- but the real threat lies to BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIMM) that saw market of its smart phones share dip sharply in the survey and is seeing waning demand for its devices.

Research in Motion (RIMM), a tech stock whose colleagues include Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and Nokia (NOK), issued fourth-quarter results Wednesday after the bell. Unfortunately, they weren't met with enthusiasm.

According to a summary over at DailyFinance, net income came in at $1.27 per share, which represented pretty respectable, double-digit growth compared to the relevant period. The top line also seemed good to me, but didn't satisfy analysts and investors sold the stock during Wednesday's after-hours session. Adding a Goldman Sachs downgrade of the share to sell from neutral Thursday morning and RIMM is selling off some 5% in premarket trading.