Buy -- Price 47.97 on Aug. 27 by FTN Midwest Securities Aon [will] buy Benfield Group Limited (BFD.U.K.) for GBP 3.50 ($6.55) a share in cash, and assume GBP 91 million of BFD's net debt... . . The offering price was at a 29% premium to BFD's Aug. 21 close; $122 million of expense-savings potential will be fully realized in 2011. We believe the combination is a smart one, capitalizing on Benfield's ... risk-modeling expertise. The soft property-reinsurance market [presents] challenges ... yet we see significant [long-term] upside. Market cap: $14.3 billion.

Buy -- Price 45.53 on Aug. 26 by Janney Montgomery Scott ADVs' recent 10-Q included some favorable guidance surrounding product implementations and lower ... expenses. [So we] increase our full-year earnings-per-share estimate to 64 cents, from 62 cents, and our full-year revenue estimate to $260.6 million, [versus a] prior $259.9 million... . We [expect] ADVS ... to report a strong 3Q ... [and] to increase full-year guidance. Our 64 fair value represents 25 times the midpoint of management's increased [fiscal-year] 2008 cash flow guidance of $70 million to $73 million/$2.55 a share. ADVS generated $62 million of operating cash flow last year (+32%), and cash-flow growth is accelerating from there. Market cap: $1.2 billion.

Accumulate -- Price 59.09 on Aug. 25 by The Buckingham Research Group Reiterating Buy, with a 72 target: 18.5 times forward-year EPS -- in line with peers. ARG has grown EPS [by nearly] 20% the past five- to- 20 years, and had no quarters with down EPS or volumes during "02 recession... . Investors looking to avoid ... volatility should look to Airgas. Industrial gases are among the most consistent chemical performers, since they are not based on petroleum, are difficult for customers to inventory and serve a very broad set of end markets. Market cap: $5 billion.

Sector Perform -- Price 46.45 on Aug. 27 by RBC Capital Markets Strong performance in the rapidly growing international division is offset by greater exposure to business lending and the strong Canadian dollar, while the domestic franchise lags the leading banks. Our 49 target implies an approximate price/earnings multiple of 11.7 times estimated 2009 EPS. The five-year average forward P/E is 12.5 times. Target risks include the health of the economy [and] capital markets ... and greater-than-anticipated impact from off-balance-sheet commitments [as well as various acquisition-execution risks], geopolitical and litigation risks, a rising Canadian dollar and rising business-loan losses. Market cap: $46 billion.

Buy -- Price 2.38 on Aug. 26 by Dahlman Rose & Co. Raising target to 3.75 from 3.50, as ... new contracts have been announced. Our target is based on a 2009 estimate of $45 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization applied to an "09 Ebitda multiple of six. Market cap: $219 million.

Market Perform/Speculative -- Price 11.06 on Aug. 26 by Morgan Keegan EDR opened its first on-balance-sheet development project ... at S. Illinois University. It was 100% preleased, at rental rates above pro forma... . EDR [also says it] agreed with Syracuse University to develop and own on-campus [housing]... . EDR's first [such] announcement, [and] management is working on others. While that will have relatively little impact on "09 results, the addition of $28 million in development deliveries to the portfolio adds a penny to our 2009 [funds from operations]-per-share estimate ... from 86 cents to 87 cents. Market cap: $315 million.

Outperform -- Price 64.63 on Aug. 26 by FBR Capital Markets Our month jackup [-rig] backlog report indicates there should be a pro forma average shortage of six rigs over the next nine months, up from three... . This could put upward pressure on day rates... . A $10,000 increase in day rates would increase Ensco's EPS to 12% above consensus in 2010 ... [and] EPS should increase to $9.70 and $11 for 2009 and 2010, respectively -- 9% and 12% above consensus estimates. Market cap: $9.3 billion.

Strong Buy -- Price 19.01 on Aug. 25 by CL King & Associates Gap shares trade at P/E of just 12.7 times, based on an average of our EPS estimates for FY08 at $1.42, FY09, $1.57... . With group average 14.7 times, at [our 24 target], GAP would trade at a P/E of 16 times, which we believe appropriate for a company with strong earnings-growth prospects through FY09. We [believe] Gap is transitioning its margin expansion from inventory reductions to a wide range of key drivers. Market cap: $13.8 billion.