Stock Upgrades, Downgrades from TheStreet.com Ratings

Each weekday, TheStreet.com Ratings updates its ratings on the stocks it covers. The proprietary ratings model projects a stock's total return potential over a 12-month period, including both price appreciation and dividends. Buy, hold or sell ratings designate how the Ratings group expects these stocks to perform against a general benchmark of the equities market and interest rates.

While the ratings model is quantitative, it uses both subjective and objective elements. For instance, subjective elements include expected equities market returns, future interest rates, implied industry outlook and company earnings forecasts. Objective elements include volatility of past operating revenue, financial strength and company cash flows.

Media company E. W. Scripps(SSP Quote) has been downgraded to hold. While the company's net income growth has been compelling, profit margins have been weak, EPS growth has been feeble and the stock's performance has been generally disappointing. E.W. Scripps recently reported that second-quarter earnings increased 37% to $97.5 million, or 59 cents a share, but the company missed analysts' expectations due to disappointing TV and newspaper advertising revenue. The company also warned that third-quarter profit will miss Wall Street's forecast. E.W. Scripps had been rated a buy since September 2006.

IntercontinentalExchange(ICE Quote), which operates an Internet-based global electronic marketplace, has been upgraded to hold. The company has seen impressive growth in revenue, EPS and net income, but the stock's sharp appreciation over the last year has driven it to a price level that is now relatively expensive compared with the rest of its industry. Last month, ICE said earnings jumped 73% to $53.7 million, or 75 cents a share. Revenue surged 86% to $136.7 million, driven by strong volume during the quarter at ICE Futures, the company's U.K. futures business segment; at NYBOT, ICE's U.S. futures business segment; and in its global over-the-counter business segment, as well as growth in the market data business segment. ICE had been rated a sell since December 2006.