Hewlett-Packard - JPMorgan Chase has upgraded HP to "neutral" from "underweight," saying that despite caution about tech spending, a positive inflection point could be nearing.
International Business Machines - JPMorgan Chase is downgrading IBM to "neutral" from "overweight," noting the company now has limited upside potential at a time when broader tech markets could be bottoming.
American Express, Capital One - Goldman Sachs has upgraded Capital One to "buy" from "neutral," while cutting American Express to "neutral" from "buy." It said Amex's earnings growth will be limited without further expense cuts, while Capital One will benefit from acquisition costs from past years subsiding.
Hartford Financial - The insurance company's Chairman and CEO Liam McGee underwent successful surgery during the holidays to remove a small brain tumor. The tumor was completely removed and McGee will be back in the office today.
Charles Schwab - Schwab has joined those planning to provide daily per-share market values for domestic money market funds. Federated Investors and Fidelity Investments made similar announcements Friday, joining Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and others who did so earlier in the week.
United Parcel Service - The delivery service is abandoning its planned $6.9 billion takeover of Amsterdam's TNT Express, after running into resistance from European antitrust regulators.
Microsoft - Microsoft's new Windows 8 operating system didn't provide much of a holiday season spur to PC sales, according to figures from research firm Gartner. PC shipments declined 4.3 percent during the fourth quarter as consumers increasingly favored tablets and smartphones.
Oracle - Oracle has released an emergency update for its widely used Java software. That comes several days after the U.S. government urged PC users to disable the program because of a security vulnerability.
American International Group - The insurer is suing Maiden Lane II, the investment vehicle created by the Federal Reserve of New York in 2008 to buy residential mortgage-backed securities from AIG. The dispute centers around AIG's right to sue issuers of mortgage debt that went sour.
Flowers Foods - Flowers is buying Wonder Bread and other bread brands from bankrupt Hostess Brands for $390 million. Hostess has not yet announced buyers for its snacks, but is expected to do so within a few weeks.
Lear - The maker of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems is taking a variety of financing actions to improve its liquidity, and it is also expanding its stock buyback program by $800 million.
Intuitive Surgical - The surgical products maker's stock has been upgraded to "buy" from "neutral" at Lazard Capital.
