Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) Q1 earnings tumbled while revenues rose.
• Casella Waste Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CWST) posted a narrower-than-expected Q4 loss.
• CKE Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: CKR) Q1 earnings increased but its revenue slipped.
• Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) swung to a Q4 profit on strong sales at Olive Garden.
• Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) said it might not see Q2 profit growth on lower demand and shipping delays.
• General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) Q4 earnings declined but were in line with expectations.
• Gerber Scientific Inc. (NYSE: GRB) reported solid Q4 and full-year results that pleased investors.
• IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS) beat Q2 expectations and posted record quarterly cash flow from operations.
• Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL) stronger-than-expected Q3 results led to an analyst's upgrade.
• KB Home (NYSE: KBH) widened its Q2 loss due to weak sales and falling prices.
• Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) beat Q1 expectations as consumers sought discounts on food and gas.
• Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) beat Q3 earnings estimates but fell short of revenue estimates.
• Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) posted better-than-expected Q4 results boosted by international strength.
• Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) posted strong Q4 results that topped analysts' expectations (see transcript).

• Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) posted dismal results as revenue fell despite higher sales volume.
• Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) Q1 revenues soared as results beat Wall Street expectations.
• Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) posted disappointing results and lackluster guidance (transcript).
• Rite-Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD) swung ot a larger-than-expected Q1 loss on integration difficulties.
• Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ: SONC) earnings warning took shares to a new 52-week low.
• Symmetry Medical Inc. (NYSE: SMA) beat Q1 estimates on increased demand and acquisitions.
• United Parcel Serivce (NYSE: UPS) cut its earnings forecast due to rising fuel prices and less demand.
• Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) posted sluggish Q3 results despite cost-cutting measures.

Also, do the results from Oracle, Research in Motion, and Red Hat point to a bottom for tech stocks? Will Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG) new CFO be more likely to provide the guidance that analysts crave?

Upcoming results to watch for include H&R Block (NYSE: HRB), Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ), Apollo Group (NASDAQ: APOL), Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO), WD-40 (NASDAQ: WDFC), and Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Goldman downgraded U.S. Brokers to Neutral from Attractive since they can not find a catalyst to move the group significantly higher over the next few months given the continued deterioration in fundamentals. Goldman added Citigroup (NYSE:C) to their Conviction Sell List as they expect additional write-downs of $8.9B in Q2 and see the potential for additional capital raises. Goldman lowered their target price on Citigroup shares to $16 and recommends a pair trade of long Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), short Citigroup.
  
• Wachovia downgraded Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) shares to Market Perform from Outperform on renewed economic fears, a likely slower pace of substantial capital raises, seasonally slower prime brokerage, and valuation.
  
• Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) was cut to Market Perform from Outperform at JMP Securities following the weaker-than-expected Q1 report and guidance and lowered FY09 EPS estimates on increased spending.

• Red Hat (NYSE:RHT) was downgraded to Market Weight from Overweight at Thomas Weisel.
  
• JP Morgan lowered British Sky Broadcasting (NYSE:BSY) to Underweight from Overweight.
  
• WuXi Pharma (NYSE:WX) was downgraded at Oppenheimer to Perform from Outperform.
  
• General Motors (NYSE:GM) was downgraded at Goldman to Sell from Neutral.

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Here's a quick recap of some additional earnings reports on Wednesday.

Beaverton, Ore.-based Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) said strong growth overseas helped boost its fourth-quarter profit by 12% to $490.5 million, or 98 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected the company to earn 96 cents per share for the quarter. Shares fell more than 5% in after-hours trading to $62.15.

CKE Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: CKR) said its first-quarter profit climbed 8% to $16.6 million, or 31 cents per share, helped by a small increase in same-store sales at Carl's Jr. restaurants. Revenue fell 3% to $466.2 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected profit of 27 cents per share on revenue of $465.5 million. Shares fell 5 cents to $12.25 in after-hours trading.

Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 6.6% to $17.3 million, or 8 cents per share. Adjusted earnings were 18 cents per share. Revenue rose 32% to $156.6 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial on average predicted a profit of 18 cents per share on revenue of $153 million. Shares fell 19 cents in after-hours trading to $22.11.

General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) said its fourth-quarter profit dropped 17% to $185.2 million, or 53 cents per share. Adjusted earnings were 73 cents per share, which met Wall Street expectations. Sales increased 13% to $3.47 billion beating expectations. The company reaffirmed its guidance for the full year. Shares fell almost 2% to $61.19.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) said its fiscal first-quarter profit tumbled 27% to $76.8 million, or 30 cents per share, as costs outweighed sales growth. Sales rose 6.1 percent to $1.65 billion, Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had expected a profit of 27 cents per share on $1.62 billion in revenue. Shares rose 8.5% in after-hours trading to $31.00.

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Open source software continues its torrid pace. In fact, according to a report from the 451 Group, the sector saw its biggest quarter for venture funding -- hitting $203.75 million, which is up from $100.4 million in the same period a year ago.

Why the interest? Well, I had a chance to interview Matthew Aslett, who is an analyst of enterprise software at the 451 Group:

Your take on the focus on open source?

VCs are interested in open source vendors because the open source development and distribution models reduce start-up costs and lower the barriers to entry. Some VCs have also cited increased code quality as a reason for investing in open source as the model enables a broader range of product testing and rapid innovation. There are a number of VCs that are sold on the open source model, and some have even stated that they would only consider investing in a software vendor if it was using and producing open source. Open source vendor revenues are lower than more established traditional rivals today, but most vendors are still in their infancy. Recent mergers and acquisitions involving open source vendors such as Zimbra, JBoss and MySQL have proved that the returns are there and are likely to encourage more VCs to look favorably on open source.

What are VCs looking at, in terms of sectors and trends?

The early open source success stories have involved vendors disrupting existing markets, such as Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) in operating systems, JBoss in middleware, and MySQL in databases. Interest has now moved up the stack to applications, such as SugarCRM and Compiere, and also into new markets where the new open source vendors have the ability to set the agenda. The other disruptive software model at the moment is software-as-a-service, and VCs are understandably attracted to vendors that combine the lower development costs of open source with the ease of adoption of the SaaS model.

What are some of the exciting companies on your radar screen?

I believe we will see further investment in open source enterprise applications this year, as that is still an emerging opportunity for disruption. Some of the most interesting companies are those that are targeting entirely new opportunities and markets, however. Ringside Networks is focused on bringing social networking to corporate environments with open source software and a team of experienced open source executives (ex-JBoss). It has already an undisclosed seed round from Matrix Partners and is likely to attract serious interest in a Series A round. LoopFuse is also staffed by JBoss veterans and is attracting a lot of attention thanks to its focus on open source sales and marketing automation. Meanwhile Acquia was founded in December by the creator of the Drupal content management system and has a great opportunity to build on broad adoption and a large community of developers.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

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As one quarter rolls over into the next, here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Best Buy Inc. (NYSE: BBY) beat fourth-quarter expectations and offered a positive outlook for fiscal 2009.
• CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) beat Wall Street earnings estimates for the fourth quarter.
• Citi Trends Inc. (NASDAQ: CTRN) beat fourth-quarter estimates and offered a rosy outlook for fiscal 2009.
• Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) swung to a fourth-quarter loss but beat estimates.
• Family Dollar Stores (NYSE: FDO) beat second-quarter estimates but slashed its full-year outlook.
• Immucor Inc. (NASDAQ: BLUD) beat third-quarter expectations and offered a positive full-year outlook.
• Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) beat second-quarter expectations but the full-year outlook disappointed.
• Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) third-quarter earnings surged on strong demand and higher crop prices.
• Paychex Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX) results on path to continue an 18-year earnings/revenue growth streak.
• Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) posted solid fourth-quarter results on strength of JBoss and other offerings.
• Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) fourth-quarter earnings and revenue more than doubled.
• Ruby Tuesday Inc. (NYSE: RT) third-quarter earnings beat low expectations; full-year outlook is bleak.
• Scholastic Corp. (NASDAQ: SCHL) announced disappointing third-quarter results post-Harry Potter.
• UBS (NYSE: UBS) writes off $19 million for the first quarter and shows chairman the door.

Also, prospects look grim for some newspapers. The financial crisis in the U.S. prompted the IMF to cut its global growth forecast.

Upcoming results to watch for include Alcoa (NYSE: AA), Circuit City Stores (NYSE: CC), Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), and General Electric (NYSE: GE).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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Over the past few weeks, I've talked to a variety of players in the open source world, including people at EnterpriseDB. No doubt, it's a powerful force -- and that's attracting a good amount of venture capital. What's more, companies like Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) have shown that there's money to be made.

But is it possible for a mainstream software company to offer open source? Well, there's no clear-cut answer yet. After all, it's tough to sell a customer expensive software but at the same time offer a free version.

Yet, as history has shown, the software industry can be nimble.

Take Day Software. Based in Switzerland, the company has built a franchise in the content management space. Revenues are growing nicely and the company drops a lot of cash flow.

At the same time, Day has invested in open source technologies. For example, the company recently purchased Mindquarry, which is a provider of collaboration technologies.

"We are still in the early stages of open source," said Chris Harano, who is the CFO of Day, in an interview with me. "I can't say there are any definite answers. Perhaps the software company of the future will have a combination of approaches, such as open source and on-demand."

Although, it looks like open source can be a powerful way to turbocharge marketing. "In enterprise software, the sales cycle can be long," said Harano. "But with open source, potential customers will often download the software and start using it. It actually cuts down the traditional cycle."

In fact, in one case, Day Software snagged a customer without any face-to-face contact. "The prospect downloaded the software and contacted us via email," said Harano. "They wanted to buy our professional version. So far, it's resulted in over $1 million in licenses. I can't say it proves that there's synergy between mainstream and open source, but this is the kind of sale I'll take any time."

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

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There's much concern in the information technology (IT) world. Might companies cut back on spending in light of the slowing economy?

Well, as for Red Hat (NYSE: RHT), the environment seems to be OK. For example, in Q4, the company posted a 27% increase in revenues to $141.5 million. What's more, bookings are bulging (above $200 million).

While RedHat has a strong business with its Linux offerings, the company is also seeing lots of traction with its middleware platform, known as JBoss. Interestingly enough, with Oracle's (NASDAQ: ORCL) buyout of BEA Systems (NASDAQ: BEAS), there's been a surge in downloads of JBoss. Basically, customers want an alternative.

Going forward, Red Hat forecasts revenues of $665 million to $680 for the upcoming year. Earnings are expected to range from $0.78 to $0.82 per share.

And Red Hat recently purchased Amentra, which is a systems services company. Basically, the deal will allow Red Hat to continue to turbocharge its sales of JBoss.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates DealProfiles.com.

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Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) is up almost 7% on an upgrade from Goldman Sachs.

Redhat (NYSE: RHT) is up almost 5% on strong earnings.

BioMimetic Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BMTI) is up 39% on positive news from the FDA about one of its products.

Apollo Group (NASDAQ: APOL) is off 15% on poor earnings.

Maguire Properties (NYSE: MPG) is down 5% on news that the company is no longer for sale.

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

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

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• Caris & Company initiated coverage on Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) with an Average rating and a $96 target price. It also initiated coverage on Nokia (NYSE: NOK) with an Above Average rating.
• Stanford Research initiated coverage on Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) with a Buy and on Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) with a Hold.
• Bear Stearns upgraded Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) from Peer Perform to Outperform and downgraded Saks (NYSE: SKS) from Peer Perform to Underperform.
• Jefferies & Co downgraded Adobe Systems (NASDAQ: ADBE) from Buy to Underperform, lowering that target price from $50 to $30.
• Banc of America downgraded Polo Ralph Lauren (NYSE: RL) from Buy to Neutral. It also downgraded Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) for Outperform to Sector Perform.

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Last week Forbes released its annual list of the fastest growing tech stocks, and it shouldn't be much of a surprise that Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) topped the list, with nearly $15 billion in sales, representing five-year sales growth of 155%, and 30% EPS growth. To make the list, companies had to have significant sales growth over the past year and five years, as well as a good earnings forecast for the next three to five years. Companies with significant legal problems or corporate governance issues were excluded.

Rounding out the top five were Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), Ceradyne Inc. (NASDAQ: CRDN), Euronet Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: EEFT), and FalconStor Software Inc. (NASDAQ: FALC). Some other familiar names that made the list this year include Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT), L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL), Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE), and Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ: CTSH). Cognizant has been on Forbes list since its inauguration six years ago. For the full list, see the Forbes article.

Also of interest was the Forbes Fast 15, companies that didn't make the list mentioned above, but which Forbes thought were worth keeping an eye on for their potential. Engineering software maker Ansys Inc. (NASDAQ: ANSS), semiconductor maker Atheros Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: ATHR), Brubaker BioSciences Corp. (NASDAQ: BRKR), and scoreboard maker Daktronics Inc. (NASDAQ: DAKT) top that list. For the full list, see the Forbes article.

So if, like Aaron Katsman, Georges Yared, and Jim Cramer, you are bullish on tech stocks, then there's plenty on the Forbes lists worth taking a look at.

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Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) provides customers with the Linux open source computer operating system. It also provides a variety of compatible technical programs, software development tools, support services and training programs. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), with its Windows operating system, is Red Hat's chief competitor. The firm operates strategic alliances with Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD).

Red Hat pleased investors earlier in the month, when it reported fiscal Q3 EPS of 19 cents and revenues of $135.4 million. Analysts had been expecting 18 cents and $132.4 million. A sharp jump in subscriptions more than offset increased operating expenses. Management also provided strong guidance for Q4/FY08 and announced that former Delta Airlines (NYSE: DAL) COO James Whitehurst would take over as CEO on January 1. RHT shares popped on the news and then moved into a bullish "flag" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling on entry. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the shares with one "strong buy", six "buys," fourteen "holds" and one "sell." Analysts see a 23% average annual growth rate, through the next five years. The RHT Price to Book ratio (4.27), Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (26.28), Sales Growth rate (27.98%) and EPS Growth rate (171.43%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions own about 95% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the AMEX Internet Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $18.04 and $25.25. A stop-loss of $18.15 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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As the holidays loom, not to mention the end of the quarter, here are some highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) posted solid Q4 results, but left its guidance unchanged.
• Bear Stearns Cos. (NYSE: BSC) swung to a loss, another victim of the subprime mortgage mess.
• Best Buy Inc. (NYSE: BBY) beat estimates in part on sales of the Nintendo Wii and flat-panel TVs.
• CarMax Inc.'s (NYSE: KMX) net earnings declined, and the company lowered its guidance.
• Circuit City Stores (NYSE: CC) posted another disappointing quarter on "transformation" woes.
• Darden Restaurants Inc.'s (NYSE: DRI) Q2 profits fell, leading the share price to a one-year low.
• FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) beat low expectations, boosted in part by international growth.
• Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) beat estimates, but not enough to impress investors.
• Herman Miller Inc. (NASDAQ: MLHR) beat estimates despite restructuring and the soft economy.
• Hovnanian Enterprises Inc.'s (NYSE: HOV) dismal results had wide-ranging effects.
• Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL) posted a solid quarter but lowered its outlook due to coming restructuring.
• Martek Biosciences Corp. (NASDAQ: MATK) beat expectations and raised its guidance.
• Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) posted worse-than-expected quarter and full-year results.
• Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) beat expectations on the strength of software upgrades.
• Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM), reported a Q2 loss and lowered its guidance for the current quarter.
• Red Hat Inc.'s (NYSE: RHT) earnings were in line with expectations, but it raised its outlook.
• Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) posted a solid quarter and raised its guidance.
• Take Two Interactive (NASDAQ: TTWO) warned of a higher-than-expected loss for the first quarter.
• TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: AMTD) raised its outlook for first quarter earnings.
• Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) posted a solid quarter on strong sales and cost controls.

In light of results for the financials, both Peter Cohan and Jim Cramer ponder what sets Goldman Sachs apart from its rivals, but Timothy Sykes is not impressed with the stock. And ahead of its earnings report, Bear Stearns announced that executives would forgo their bonuses, setting a new precedent. Peter Cohan also explains why analysts tend to be optimistic about earnings, and Jim Cramer examines the recent strength in tech stocks.

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Banc of America downgraded shares of Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) to Neutral from Buy, despite expectations for solid Q3 results, due to a lack of billings catalysts and their belief that JBoss continues to have trouble gaining momentum.
  
• Capital One (NYSE: COF) was lowered to Hold from Buy at Jefferies, as they expect limited upside until investors have improved visibility on the extent and timing of credit losses.
  
• Merrill downgraded Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO) to Neutral from Buy on a lack of near-term catalysts with the company's diabetes and obesity drug-trial data being already presented.

• Goldman removed CME Group (NYSE: CME) from its Conviction Buy List.
  
• JP Morgan lowered Plantronics (NYSE: PLT) to Underweight from Neutral.
  
• Thomas Weisel downgraded SLM Corp (NYSE: SLM) to Market Weight from Overweight.

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Washington Mutual (NYSE: WM) was cut to "sell" from "neutral" at Banc of America Securities. MarketWatch quotes that analyst as writing, "We see market confidence in earnings progression deteriorating as industry origination is falling and credit concerns mount. Industry valuation should continue trending towards cyclical lows."

Banc of America also cut its rating on software company Redhat (NYSE: RHT) from "buy" to "neutral," saying the 2008 earnings had a limited upside.

Medical device company Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) was initiated as "underperform" by Friedman Billings, which set a $9 price target due to concerns over stent sales, according to Briefing.com.

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

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LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) is up 16% on news of a new contract with Q-Cells.

Novavax (NASDAQ: NVAX) is trading up 12% on a partnership with GE (NYSE: GE)'s healthcare group.

Hemispherx Biopharma (AMEX: HEB) is off 20% on a terminated license agreement with Esteve.

Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) is moving down almost 4% on a downgrade from Jefferies & Co.

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

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

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