MOST NOTEWORTHY: Abercrombie & Fitch, ENGlobal Corp and Wausau Paper were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Morgan Keegan initiated Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) with a Market Perform citing lack of comp momentum and the outlook for consumer spending.
  
• Jesup & Lamont expects ENGlobal's (NASDAQ:ENG) earnings momentum to remain in place due to sustained demand for energy products. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $13.25 target.
  
• Soleil expects Wausau Paper (NASDAQ:WPP) shares to be driven by its value-added market focus, product innovation and improved mix. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Citigroup assumed coverage of XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ:XMSR) with a Hold rating from Buy, and a $12.25 target from $17. The firm also assumed Sirius Satellite (NASDAQ:SIRI) with a Buy rating and $8 target from $4.25.
  
• Morgan Stanley initiated MarkWest Energy (NYSE:MWE) with an Overweight rating.
  
• Soleil initiated Potash (NYSE:POT) with a Hold rating.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: EastGroup Properties, Take-Two and Calumet Specialty were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• After EastGroup (NYSE:EGP) reported slightly higher-than-expected Q1 FFO per share, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy on valuation. However, the firm still believes that the company's business model and dividend fundamentals are well-positioned.
  
• Citigroup downgraded Take-Two (NASDAQ:TTWO) to Hold from Buy citing balanced risk/reward as the firm does not expect an aggressive competing bid process.
  
• Raymond James downgraded Calumet (NASDAQ:CLMT) to Underperform from Market Perform following the company's reduction in distribution to 45c unit from 63c.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Citigroup lowered XM Satellite (NASDAQ:XMSR) to Hold from Buy.
  
• Oppenheimer cut First Midwest Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMBI) to Perform from Outperform.
  
• Bernstein downgraded DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) to Market Perform from Outperform.

Goldman Sachs believes that the Q2 forecast from Citrix Systems (NASDAQ:CTXS) to push the share price down according to the AP.

Citigroup downgraded XM Satellite (NASDAQ:XMSR) from "buy" to "hold" according to Briefing.com. The news service also reports that Merriman upgraded Level 3 (NASDAQ:LVLT) from "sell" to "neutral."

DIRECTV (NYSE:DTV) was downgraded to "market perform" at Bernstein according to 24/7 Wall St. The financial site also reports that Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) was cut to "hold" from "buy at Citigroup

Douglas A. McIntyre

Back on March 24, I made some very rudimentary predictions on BloggingStocks based on the chart patterns of some popular technology names. Let's see how I fared:

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) performed just as its chart implied it would -- a clear path from $140 to $160, but no more. Score one for technical analysis!

I noted that while Research in Motion Ltd (NASDAQ: RIMM) had a solid base, a ton of overhead resistance would prevent a big breakout-bingo, another perfect call -- no matter that it wasn't actionable -- the stock's barely higher now, just like the Nasdaq market as a whole.

The very day my original article came out, Priceline.com Inc (NASDAQ: PCLN) did indeed breakout to a new high, but ever since it's done exactly squat. Hmm, was this a self-fulfilling prophecy -- somehow I can't quite claim victory here, although its definitely not a defeat.

Thornberg (NYSE: TMA) is up over 30% on news that it has raised $1.3 billon.

Cell Genesis (NASDAQ: CEGE) is up 38% on a development partnership with Takeda Pharmaceutical.

Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) is up almost 6% on news that it has raised $3 billion.

Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) is down 1.3% on news that Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) will not raise its offer for the company.

Stocks may trade differently in the pre-market than they do in the regular session.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Fixing 5 Painful Money Screw-Ups
You goofed. Forget to pay your credit-card bill? Neglected to file a tax return or pay a speeding ticket? You can easily remedy these and other money blunders. Here are lessons to remedy a blow to your credit rating, insurance premium and more.
Fixing Five Painful Financial Screw-Ups - 2007-2008 - Kiplinger.com

U.S. stock futures turned positive recently, despite being lower earlier this morning. With the recent advances on Wall Street the past two sessions, some investors feel it may be prudent to be more cautious and wait for some more data to be released before rejoining the activity.


Today, two main economic releases are due. The S&P/Case-Shiller index on home prices in January is due before the market open and March consumer confidence is due out at 10 a.m. EDT. Judging from yesterday's existing home sales report, housing prices haven't recovered yet and will likely show yet another decline. Similarly, consumer confidence is expected to be lower than the previous month as well, as consumers haven't regained confidence in the economy.

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s (NASDAQ: SIRI) $5 billion acquisition of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: XMSR) was cleared by the U.S. Department of Justice. Now, all eyes turn to Federal Communications Commission to determine if satellite radio lives or dies.

The acquisition -- not a merger -- has been held up for eons by phony arguments that combining these two floundering companies would limit choice. Terrestrial radio and consumer groups have been lobbying hard against the deal, arguing that anything that benefits Howard Stern can't be good for America.

I can't see how the FCC can block a deal that the DOJ approved after examining the deal under and electron microscope. The medium won't survive if the companies stay separate. Even fans of satellite radio admit that it is a niche medium. Then again, so is cable TV.

For me satellite radio is a godsend, particularly on long road trips. I enjoy listening to Sirius while tapping out my blog posts. I particularly like the commercial-free music channels. Regular radio has annoyed music fans by piling on commercial after commercial between tiny slivers of music.

Satellite radio can avoid the fate of BetaMax by continuing to produce high-quality content that people want to buy. It's that simple and that complicated.

Freelance writer Jonathan Berr edits the blog Ketchup and Eggs.

The Justice Department has approved Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI)'s $5 million buyout of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: XMSR), on the grounds that the deal is not likely to hurt consumers or competition.

In a press release, the Justice Department said that "The likely evolution of technology played an important role in the Division's assessment of competitive effects in the longer term because, for example, consumers are likely to have access to new alternatives, including mobile broadband Internet devices, by the time the current long-term contracts between the parties and car manufacturers expire."

And that is exactly why I wouldn't touch either of these companies. The Justice Department is essentially saying that emerging technology will make satellite radio a small enough part of the industry that consumers won't be harmed by the 2 biggest players merging. Do you really want to own a money-losing entity that will be facing increased competition over the next few years because of new alternatives for consumers?

XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: XMSR) and Sirius (NASDAQ: SIRI) combination received U.S. DOJ antitrust approval reports Bloomberg. XMSR is recently up $2.56 to $14.44. XMSR and SIRI announced in February of 2007 a merger of equals. XMSR shareholders will receive 4.6 SIRI shares for each XMSR share. XMSR call option volume of 22,565 contracts compares to put volume of 7,775 contracts. XMSR April option implied volatility of 75 is below its 26-week average of 98 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

While I believe much of the price action in the most actively traded technology stocks to be rather unpredictable, there are specific price points at which the odds can be in your favor. Because so many traders believe in chart reading, or technical analysis, the price action often becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy (as I've written about here). So, let's take a look at some popular names with traders:

Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL), after a big drop, has already put in solid sideways price action and if it can break $140, there looks to be a rather clear path to $160.

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ: RIMM) has weathered this storm incredibly well, putting in a solid double bottom in the low $80s and more recently, holding the key $100 level. There's still resistance at both $110 and $120, so a big breakout doesn't seem likely anytime soon.

Priceline.com Inc (NASDAQ: PCLN) is still in the midst of a strong yearlong uptrend, a mere $10 off its highs. On any market rebound, I fully expect this stock to break out to new highs.

The FCC says it is getting closer to announcing its opinion of the Sirius (NASDAQ:SIRI) merger with XM Satellite (NASDAQ:XMSR). That may not be good news. The commission may turn the deal down.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "FCC boss Kevin Martin said "he had asked his staff to draft a document incorporating a variety of possible outcomes for the merger proposal."

In the case of the merger, no news is bad news. Aside from the likelihood that a long review may be a result of the FCC and Justice Department building a case again the deal, over the last year the finances of both companies have gotten worse.

In the last quarter, the subscriber growth at XM and Sirius slowed. Both lost money and face tremendous debt service. Each company has more than $1 billion in long-term debt on its balance sheet.

If the merger gets killed, one of the companies may not make it. The balance sheet and P&L problems are just that tight.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: XMSR) shares are rising today as analysts again talk up the supposed completion of the US DOJ investigation into the XM-Sirius (NASDAQ: SIRI) merger. We have heard this kind of talk regarding this deal before, so not many are getting overly excited. If you think that the company won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on XMSR.

After hitting a one-year high of $16.44 in December, the stock hit a one-year low of $9.62 in January. XMSR opened this morning at $11.57. So far today the stock has hit a low of $11.40 and a high of $12.07. As of 11:55, XMSR is trading at $11.83, up 61 cents (5.4%). The chart for XMSR looks neutral but improving slightly, while S&P gives the stock a very negative 1 STARs (out of 5) strong sell rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider an April bull-put credit spread below the $9 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. This particular trade will make a 25.0% return in just one month as long as XMSR is above $9 at April expiration. XM would have to fall by more than 24% before we would start to lose money.

XMSR hasn't been below $9.50 at all in the past year and has shown support around $11 recently. This trade could be risky if the stock breaks below its year lows, but for now the uncertainty of the company's situation could keep the stock in its recent trading range between $9.50 and $15.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in XMSR or SIRI.

10 Ubiquitous 20th Century Brands That Will Disappear
Several brands which were extremely powerful during the last few decades are about to disappear in the next year or two. Many of them no longer drive big sales. Some are a part of companies that are in trouble. Some are part of industries which are falling apart. They include XM Satellite Radio, Dodge, E*Trade, K-Mart, Circuit City, Gateway, Old Navy and more.
24/7 Wall St.: Ubiquitous 20th Century Brands That Will Disappear


Gas Reward Cards Become Less Rewarding
Credit-card companies are making it tougher for you to reap benefits on gas reward cards. They are cutting back incentives and offering plenty of fine print. Two years ago, most gas reward cards offered 5% rebates. Now, the average is 3%. To keep your rebates from running out of gas, here are four things you need to watch out for before you apply for a gas rewards car.
Gas Rewards Cards Making It Tougher to Reap Benefits | SmartMoney.com


Billionaire Bachelors
Looking for a very rich man? Try one of these men who seem to have it all and are worth billions.
In Pictures: Billionaire Bachelors - Forbes.com


Celebrity Billionaires
These are the most well-known people on Forbes' world's richest list. They include Steven Spielberg, JK Rowling, Giorgio Armani, George Steinbrenner, NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg, George Lucas, Ralph Lauren, Donald Trump, Steve Jobs and Oprah Winfrey.
In Pictures: Celebrity Billionaires - Forbes.com


Billionaire Women We Envy
These women live across the world and have very varied lives, but the one thing they have in common is they are all billionaires.
In Pictures: Billionaire Women We Envy - Forbes.com

Top Tax Blunders to Avoid
It's that time of year again. Get your pencils sharpened. While not many people can say they like preparing their income-tax returns, you'll like it even less if you make mistakes and pay more tax, penalties, and interest than you need to. Here are some things to watch out for as you prepare this year's return or ready your tax documents for your accountant.
Avoid These Tax Blunders - Morningstar


Best Used Cars Under $20,000
Looking for a used car? Use Consumer Reports' guide to see which cars are your best bets. Cars are listed by price, make and year.
ConsumerReports.org - Best used vehicles under $20,000
Also: Best Used Cars for Fuel Economy