Today was a mixed day where traders and investors alike could not decide whether to trade cautiously or whether to take on risk again. More technology concerns were prevalent and the newest jobs data led traders to believe that the non-Farm payrolls data will come in weaker on Friday.

Here were today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow Jones 10,967.65 +22.93 (0.21%)
S&P 500 1,159.97 -0.78 (-0.07%)
Nasdaq 2,380.66 -19.17 (-0.80%)

"Salesforce.com (CRM) remains one of the top institutional-quality plays on the cloud computing movement," says Mike Cintolo.

The editor of Cabot Top Ten Weekly explains, "Cloud computing is a movement that really only gained momentum within the past year, but promises to transform how businesses access their various applications.

"With the uber-ambitious Ellison and Hurd now paired, I think the safe bet is we're going so see Oracle (ORCL) make some major moves (yes, probably more than one major acquisition)," suggests tech sector expert Paul McWilliams.

The editor of Next Inning explains, "After all, even without Hurd at his side, Oracle founder, Larry Ellison has been an aggressive buyer and now with Hurd on board I think the appetite could become ravenous.

"I think its probably a good idea to start thinking about what Oracle might do next.

In the fast-growing cloud computing space, Salesforce.com (CRM) is the franchise company. However, this means that the valuation is at premium levels. For example, the stock trades at nine times revenues and 174 times earnings. In other words, this stock is now for those who think the growth ramp will continue. And yes, based on the most recent quarterly report, it does look like good times will not end for awhile.

Profits came to $14.7 million, or $0.11 per share. But excluding certain stock-based charges, the adjusted earnings were $0.29 per share. As for revenues, these climbed 25% to $394.4 million.

Analyst upgrades:

• Bernstein upgraded Hospira (HSP) to Outperform from market Perform based on valuation, expectations that the company will be able to fix manufacturing issues quickly, and views Propolfol and biosimilars as underappreciated. The firm has a $63 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded eBay (EBAY) to Buy from Hold citing valuation and improvements to Marketplace. The firm keeps a $28 price target for shares.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded Coca-Cola Femsa (KOF) to Hold from Sell citing lessening acquisition risk and raised its target for shares to $66 from $61.
• Blackstone (BX) and Simon Property (SPG) were upgraded to Conviction Buy from Buy at Goldman.
• BreitBurn Energy (BBEP) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
• SL Green Realty (SLG) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.

Analyst upgrades:

• UBS upgraded Salesforce.com (CRM) to Buy from Neutral based on positive feedback on the Chatter product and increasing confidence the company can beat FY11 guidance. The firm raised its price target to $111 from $90.
• Leerink upgraded Vivus (VVUS) to Outperform from Market Perform. The firm believes Qnexa issues raised by the FDA are labeling and marketing issues, and not approval issues. The firm expects a positive panel vote for Qnexa.
• Goldman upgraded AK Steel (AKS) to Buy from Netural citing lower iron ore prices. The firm has a $17 price target on the stock.
• Kinder Morgan Energy (KMP) was upgraded to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Shire (SHPGY) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
• Canadian National (CNI) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Raymond James.

Even though customer relationship software giant salesforce.com, inc. (CRM), which I first wrote about on June 18, 2009 at a price of $40.16, is likely to post a double-digit revenue gain in the current fiscal year, now may be a good time to take some profits off the table if you purchased shares in June 2009.

Meanwhile, those investors who can tolerate the risk can retain their current position and go for an even bigger gain.

Below are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks. Click through to the original posts for more details.

• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) shares sold off after it posted a narrower Q1 net loss, but same-store sales rose.
• Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) swung from a year-ago loss to a Q2 profit that was better than expected.
• Deere & Co. (DE) reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings and improved sales, and raised its full-year outlook.
• Dell Inc. (DELL) posted better-than-expected Q1 earnings, but the gross margin was disappointing, and shares fell.
• GameStop Corp. (GME) higher Q1 earnings beat consensus estimates but same-store sales declined.
• Gap Inc. (GPS) said its higher Q1 earnings beat expectations while revenue fell in line with estimates.

Salesforce.com (CRM - option chain) shares are rising today after the company reported Q1 earnings yesterday after the close of trading, posting a profit of $17.7 million, or 13 cents per share. Excluding items, CRM earned 30 cents per share on revenue of $376.8 million, while analysts forecast a profit of 30 cents per share on revenue of $367.8 million. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on CRM.

CRM opened this morning at $73.94. So far today the stock has hit a low of $73.91 and a high of $84.07. As of 12:20, CRM is trading at $83.17 up $4.14 (5.2%). The chart for CRM looks bearish and S&P gives CRM a negative 2 STARS (out of 5) sell ranking.

Cloud computing is red-hot in the tech world. And yes, it has been a money-maker for investors, especially shareholders in Salesforce.com (CRM).

No doubt, there are other strong players in the market. But it can be easy to get overlooked.

An example is NetSuite (N). The company is a pioneer in cloud computing, getting its start in 1998. Since then, NetSuite has built a comprehensive offering of business applications for things like inventory, HR, e-commerce, accounting and so on.

Customer relationship software giant Salesforce.com (CRM), which I first wrote about on June 18, 2009 at a price of $40.16, should register impressive growth in 2010 and 2011, hence the stock remains attractive, despite being a little pricey.

This year, Salesforce.com is going to face difficult quarterly sales comparisons, commonly known in Wall Street circles as 'difficult comps,' but that's a good thing: it beats the alternative. Further, look for revenue to rise 20-25% in 2010, followed by a 15-20% gain in 2011.

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

• American International Group Inc. (AIG) posted a big loss and warned it may require additional assistance.
• Athenahealth (ATHN) shares sank after it delayed earnings and its annual report, and warned of restatements.
• Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS) Q3 sales jumped on popularity of the Nook reader but same-store sales declined.
• Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (BRCD) disappointing report and guidance caused a sell-off in shares.
• Dell Inc. (DELL) acquisitions and better-than-expected earnings may not be enough to stop shrinking market share.
• Gap Inc. (GPS) rose after it beat earnings estimates, raised its dividend and announced stock buybacks.

Not that long ago, the idea of cloud-computing was considered a fringe technology. Would major companies really allow an outside vendor to hold data -- via the Internet?

Well, the answer is yes. And of course, the biggest beneficiary is Salesforce.com (CRM), which is the pioneer of the cloud-computing mega trend.

Analyst Upgrades

• RBC Capital upgraded FMC Technologies (FMC) to outperform from sector perform. The firm upgraded shares based on expectations that subsea order flow and backlog will be significantly higher than previous forecasts. The firm has a $70 target on shares.
• Citigroup upgraded ONEOK Partners LP (OKS) to buy from hold due to valuation and maintains a $65 price target on the stock.
• Needham upgraded Autodesk (ADSK) to buy from hold following the Q4 report and guidance. The firm has a $31 target on the stock.
• Morgan Stanley upgraded Under Armour (UA) to equal weight from underweight, citing valuation. The firm raised its target to $27 from $23.
• EOG Resources (EOG) was upgraded to buy from neutral at Goldman.
• FPL Group (FPL) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
• Novo Nordisk (NVO) was upgraded to buy from hold at Jefferies.

A new book, The Prince of Silicon Valley, chronicles the dealmaking of the IPO king of the 1990s: Frank Quattrone. He made a fortune as he helped more than 100 tech companies go public, which included marquee names like Cisco (CSCO), Netscape and Amazon.com (AMZN).

But those days seem quaint. In fact, the tech IPO market has been a backwater for the past decade, even though there have been some big deals -- like the offerings of Google (GOOG) and Salesforce.com (CRM).