Today's noteworthy upgrades include: Advanced Energy (AEIS) upgraded to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna... Allstate (ALL) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Macquarie... Apigee (APIC) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan... ArcelorMittal (MT) upgraded to Buy from Add at ABN Amro... BNY Mellon (BK) upgraded on improved outlook, valuation at Bernstein...... Brookfield Property (BPY) upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital... Chuy's (CHUY) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Wunderlich... Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD) upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens... First Solar (FSLR) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Cowen... Francesca's (FRAN) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Macquarie... Genworth (GNW) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Macquarie... Hilton (HLT) upgraded to Buy at Evercore ISI... J.C. Penney (JCP) upgraded to Hold from Sell at Evercore ISI... Jacobs Engineering (JEC) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Cowen... Kellogg (K) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citi... Lexmark (LXK) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Bernstein... Marriott (MAR) upgraded to Buy at Evercore ISI... Marvell (MRVL) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Citi... Monro Muffler (MNRO) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Evercore ISI... NMI Holdings (NMIH) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at JMP Securities... Viavi (VIAV) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at B. Riley... Zions Bancorp (ZION) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Sandler O'Neill... comScore (SCOR) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Telsey Advisory.

Computershare (CMSQF) has announced that it has agreed to acquire BNY Trust Company of Canada from BNY Mellon (BK) through its Canadian trust company, Computershare Trust Company of Canada. BNY Trust Company of Canada was established in 2001 and offers a range of trust and agency services in Canada to clients, including issuers, corporations, banks and government entities. BNY Trust Company of Canada is based in Toronto and has a portfolio of around 1,800 corporate trust mandates. Computershare said it expected all relevant staff members to transfer as part of the deal, with new employees being able to operate from its own Toronto office. The deal is scheduled to complete in the second half of calendar year 2024, subject to regulatory notifications and approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Truist analyst C. Patrick Scholes raised the firm's price target on Hilton to $209 from $199 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares after its Q1 earnings beat. The company reported "powerful" earnings earnings growth in spite of the "choppy" RevPAR macro backdrop, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Truist adds however that while it continues to view Hilton's business model as among the best-in-class, it is retaining its Hold rating as it sees the stock being "fairly valued at a premium valuation".

Macquarie raised the firm's price target on Hilton to $205 from $192 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares following what the firm calls "another strong EBITDA beat" in Q1. Management also increased its 2024 EBITDA guidance, notes the firm, which still awaits a better entry point.

Wells Fargo notes that a group of seven domestic solar product makers, including First Solar (FSLR), filed a petition to levy anti-dumping and countervailing duties on solar imports from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, looking for duties ranging from 70.4% to 271.5%. The firm, which included the "important reminder" that "this is just a petition," says the uncertainty created by the petition is "incrementally positive" for First Solar and negative for Canadian Solar (CSIQ), Array Technologies (ARRY) and Nextracker (NXT).

Reports Q1 revenue $2.573, consensus $2.55B. Q1 system-wide comparable RevPAR increased 2.0%, on a currency neutral basis, compared to the same period in 2023. Christopher J. Nassetta, President & CEO, said, "We are pleased to report a strong first quarter with bottom line results meaningfully exceeding our expectations, further demonstrating the power of our resilient, fee-based business model and strong development story. During the first quarter, system-wide RevPAR increased 2.0 percent as renovations, inclement weather and unfavorable holiday shifts weighed on performance more than anticipated. On the development side, we continued to see great momentum across signings, starts and openings. As a result of our record pipeline and the growth pace we've seen to-date, we expect net unit growth of 6.0%-6.5% for the full year, excluding the planned acquisition of the Graduate Hotels brand."