sbux

MOST NOTEWORTHY: RF Micro Devices, QLT Inc and Everest RE Group were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded RF Micro (NASDAQ:RFMD) to Buy from Hold citing strong proprietary Asian channel checks. The firm believes RF Micro is past the worst of the inventory handset correction in Asia and that the MPG business is also recovering.
  
• RBC Capital said QLT Inc's (NASDAQ:QLTI) risk/reward has improved and expects divestment announcements to start in late Q2. The firm raised shares to Outperform from Sector Perform.
  
• Citigroup upgraded Everest RE (NYSE:RE) to Buy from Hold citing valuation, likely buybacks, the low risk of asbestos charges and the seasonal trade ahead.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Merriman raised Level 3 Comm (NASDAQ:LVLT) to Neutral from Sell.
  
• Zions Bancorp (NASDAQ:ZION) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
  
• True Religion (NASDAQ:TRLG) was raised at Morgan Keegan to Outperform from Market Perform.

I bought my house nearly five years ago, in a neighborhood that seemed charming but was utterly devoid of coffee shops. One day, on a lark, I Mapquested the four nearest coffeehouses and found none within 1.2 miles. I was downtrodden. That afternoon it rained, and I put my two-year-old in the stroller and we walked to the two kilometers. The barista was bad-tempered and upset at my child for playing with an antique toy she had set on a low table. I walked home, soaked to the bone and angry, and thought dark thoughts about moving. Or opening a coffee shop ...

And then came the bright day when I discovered that a local developer famous for his close relationship with Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) had purchased the property on the nearest busy corner, only two blocks away. Ground was broken six months later, and suddenly my property value doubled. That's right. Doubled.

Starbucks wasn't the only caffeine available in my neighborhood four years later; there's the Starbucks on one corner, an independent coffee shop about three blocks the other direction. There's the newbie a bit further up a side street; the coffee shop / tapas market about a half mile away. Another funky indy place went in by the local elementary school four months ago. But that groundbreaking with the smell of Starbucks in the future made it all possible.

Now everyone wants to sell their home, and indeed, we've seen dozens of new neighbors recently. I feel smug though, because I accidentally discovered (and benefited from) the smartest real estate strategy ever, that I'll share with you: buy, immediately, in a neighborhood where a Starbucks is planned. Just walk down my street and look at those fliers at the base of the "for sale" signs. "Near Starbucks, shopping," the real estate agents have written on them brightly. "Walk to coffee!"

Ok, ok, Sarah, you're saying, brilliant! You're amazing. But how the heck do I know where Starbucks is buying?