Tuesday's Top Upgrades (and Downgrades)

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This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, we investigate multiple analyst moves in the oil sector, as analysts at UBS and Global Hunter Securities pick winners and losers in the refining and transport industry.

A dozen oil companies you've never heard of
For nearly half a year, oil refiners on the Gulf Coast have cried foul over a major distortion in the oil market. With their major pipeline to the Midwest flowing only one way -- north -- refiners had no way to get access to low-priced crude oil that was pooling in storage tanks in Cushing, Okla.

Lacking pipes to send oil south, a bottleneck had formed in Cushing, which was getting flooded with new oil supply from Canada and North Dakota. Refiners fortuitously located close to the pent-up crude (such as Valero (NYSE: VLO  ) ) were able to buy oil at low prices and earn strong margins refining it. Refiners farther away were missing out. They had to practice their refining magic on higher-priced Brent crude, a form of oil that cost upward of $15 a barrel more than the sweet, light West Texas Intermediate (WTI) grade that was trapped in Cushing.

That all changed this morning, when news broke that a planned reversal of "flow" of the Seaway pipeline, run by Enbridge  (NYSE: EEP  ) and Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD  ) , was moving faster than anticipated. Basically, what this means is that oil that was flowing north to oil-soaked Cushing will stop, and beginning in late May, the pipeline will instead begin siphoning 150,000 barrels a day south to where refiners can make good use of it. As capacity expands to 400,000 b.p.d. early next year, WTI prices will rise, Brent prices will fall, and the two flavors of oil will begin trading for something closer to an identical price.

This news sparked a rash of new buy ratings from oil analyst Global Hunter Securities, which now advises investors to "buy" shares of Enbridge, "accumulate" shares of Enterprise Products (though how you do that without buying them, is anyone's guess), and get increasingly aggressive in purchasing shares of any number of pipeline operations -- everyone from Crosstex Energy to Western Gas Partners (NYSE: WES  ) .

The catch? While Seaway's early reversal of flow is a bit of a surprise, the fact that a reversal was coming has been pretty widely anticipated for quite some time. Most of the companies Global Hunter is now recommending already sport above-market price-to-earnings ratios: 20 times forward earnings for Enterprise Products and Enbridge, for example, 21 times for Western Gas, and an incredible 67 times earnings for Crosstex. If you decide to follow Global Hunter's advice and buy, the stocks' generous dividend payouts may not be enough to make up for the high sticker prices you'll be asked to pay.

And one more that you have heard of
A smarter way to play the Seaway news may be to ignore it entirely; pay no attention to the stocks that have the Street excited today, and instead look at the ones they hate. For example, UBS just reiterated its "sell" rating on ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP  ) , citing worries over the company's ability to grow reserves, and a need to increase capital spending among its concerns. But at the same time, UBS raised its target price on the stock to $64 a share.

Even that target looks pessimistic, though. Consider: At today's share price of $74-and-change, Conoco sells for a lowly 8.3 P/E ratio. Yet the stock is expected to grow its earnings at 5% per year going forward, and pays a 3.6% dividend yield (which itself is a mere fraction of annual profits, and so could be increased with ease).

Between its generous dividend yield and respectable growth prospects, Conoco now looks like a better bargain than any of the Seaway-related plays Global Hunter is recommending.

Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Enterprise Products Partners, but Motley Fool contributor Rich Smith does not own shares of, nor is he short, any company mentioned above. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Source: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2012/04/17/tuesdays-top-upgrades-and-downgrades.aspx

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ANN ROMNEY: Our Dog LOVED Riding On The Roof Of The Car

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In an interview with Diane Sawyer last night, the Romneys finally tried to set the record straight on Seamus-gate, the dog-strapped-to-the-car story that has followed Mitt Romney since his first presidential campaign. 

"The dog loved it," Ann Romney told Sawyer. "He would, like, go crazy because he was going with us on vacation. It was to me a kinder thing to bring him along than to leave him in the kennel for t-- in-- in-- in a kennel for two weeks." 

According to Ann Romney, Seamus only got sick one time, because he has "eaten turkey on the counter." She added that "it's crazy" that the Seamus story has gained so much traction. 

Sawyer then asked Mitt Romney if he would strap a family pet to the roof again, if given the chance. 

"Certainly not with the attention it's received," Romney said.

That Sawyer even asked the question about Seamus is a testament to the staying power of the story. As Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post pointed out a few weeks ago, the story has stuck around because it reinforces the perception that Romney is unfeeling and a little bit weird. 

DON'T MISS PHOTOS: Dogs Against Romney Protest Outside The Westminster Dog Show

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/r0F6gwX_Lco/ann-romney-says-dog-seamus-loved-riding-on-roof-of-car-2012-4

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EntreLeader Spotlight: James Sweatt

EntreLeadership is not just a theory. Thousands of business owners and leaders are using Dave?s principles every day to take their companies and team members to heights they never imagined. In the EntreLeadership Spotlight series, we?ll be highlighting some of these great leaders and learning about their dreams, motivation and secrets to success.

What I Do

I?m an asset manager for Southern Company in Birmingham, Alabama. Southern Company provides electric services in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida. It?s a really great place to work. I?ve been here nearly 31 years, so you know it has to be. We are consistently listed among the top U.S. electric service providers in customer satisfaction by the American Customer Satisfaction Index, and we topped Fortune magazine?s "Most Admired" list in the electric and gas utility sector for 2011.

Why I Like the DISC Profiling System

DISC helps me understand my own personality style and natural strengths and weaknesses when it comes to leading a team. I use a training/development plan to modify my natural behavior to "shore up" these areas of weakness. The DISC profile also helps me understand my team members better, enabling me to communicate and work with them more effectively.

A Characteristic Every Leader Should Possess

Vision. If you don't know where you are going, you can't lead anyone there.

My Mentors

Johnny Mitchell is a co-worker who has been a mentor to me. He exudes all aspects of servant leadership in his work.

My Best Leadership Advice

Examine your motives. If you are going into leadership for the money but you don't like building, growing, leading and maintaining teams, you are going to be very disappointed.

The Secret to My Success

Persistence.

My Favorite Movie

The World?s Fastest Indian. It?s a true story about Burt Munro, a man who followed his dream and wouldn't be denied. He set the land-speed record in 1967 after years spent building a motorcycle.

My Favorite Business App

Keynote for iPad allows you to easily build amazing presentations and share them with anyone on an iPad, iPhone, iPod, Mac or PC.

To learn more about business, team building and leadership, download our EntreLeadership Podcasts, which include lessons from Dave, plus interviews with key business leaders from across the nation. This week, host Chris LoCurto talks with Tom Rath, author of the best-selling book, StrengthsFinder 2.0.

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Source: http://www.daveramsey.com/article/entreleader-spotlight-sweatt/lifeandmoney_business

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New Rivals Challenge Zipcar?s Monopoly In Washington D.C.

There is much greater potential for penetration of car-sharing services in major cities, and upcoming competition might easily steal away market share from Zipcar

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2012/04/16/new-rivals-challenge-zipcars-monopoly-in-washington-d-c/

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Foursquare's Figured Out Exactly Where Tax Procrastinators Live

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Social media app Foursquare decided to play around with last year's check-in data to figure out which cities are home to the biggest Tax Day procrastinators. 

This isn't a scientific study by any means but maybe it's a taste of a new age in consumer surveying.

The app sifted through check-ins from its some 15 million users to find which cities saw the biggest traffic bumps at H&R Block and local post offices in the week leading up to filing day last year. 

Here's what they found: 

These cities that saw the biggest spikes in H&R Block check-ins: 

1.  Santa Barbara, CA

2.  Kansas City, MO

3.  Raleigh, NC

4.  San Jose, CA

5.  San Francisco, CA

6.  Orlando, FL

7.  Seattle, WA

8.  New York, NY

9.  San Diego, CA

10. Washington, DC

These cities saw more than 100,000 spikes in check-ins at U.S. postal offices: 

1.  Salt Lake City, UT

2.  Columbus, OH

3.  Indianapolis, IN

4.  Richmond, VA

5.  Bridgeport, CT

6.  Akron, OH

7.  Detroit, MI

8.  Austin, TX

9.  Boston, MA

10. Nashville, TN

DON'T MISS: How One Californian Nearly Swindled The US Out Of $763 Million >

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/ljs3lEG2H7I/foursquare-knows-exactly-where-the-tax-procrastinators-live-2012-4

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Source: http://www.legaldebthelponline.com/2012/04/15/business-techniques-in-addition-to-insolvency-advice-available-for-you/

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