Analyst Upgrades: Tesla Motors Inc, Raytheon Company, and Exxon Mobil Corporation

Analysts are weighing in on electric automaker Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), defense firm Raytheon Company (NYSE:RTN), and oil giant Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on TSLA, RTN, and XOM.

• Looking to bounce back after a tough week, TSLA is 0.8% higher in electronic trading, thanks to an upgrade to "hold" from "sell" at S&P Capital IQ. Since closing July at $266.15, the security has struggled, falling 17.1% to $220.69 -- and into negative year-to-date territory. Amid this downturn, option bears have stepped in. Tesla Motors Inc's 10-day put/call volume ratio at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) comes in at 1.03 -- higher than nearly two-thirds of all similar readings from the past 12 months. 


• RTN will look to benefit this morning from an upgrade to "overweight" from "neutral" at J.P. Morgan Securities, which also raised its price target to $130 from $121. Meanwhile, Barclays raised its price target to $120 from $115, and Citigroup bumped its target to $130 from $124. All three price targets mark all-time-high territory for the stock, which settled at $111.64 on Friday -- 3% above its year-to-date flatline. Most on the Street are already behind Raytheon Company. Of the 15 brokerage firms covering the shares, 12 say they're a "strong buy." 


• XOM has gained 0.6% ahead of the open, after Barclays -- which weighed in on several energy names this morning -- upgraded the stock's rating to "equal weight" from "underweight," and bumped its price target to $85 from $80. The equity is in need of some good news, as it's looking at a 14.3% year-to-date hole, as of its close at $79.26 on Friday. Regardless, option traders have remained bullish on Exxon Mobil Corporation. The stock's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX call/put volume ratio of 2.49 is only 1 percentage point from an annual high. In short, call buying has been much more popular than normal lately.