Analyst Upgrades: Wells Fargo & Co, Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd, and Devon Energy Corp

Analysts are weighing in on financial interest Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC), casino issue Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd (ADR) (NASDAQ:MPEL), and energy concern Devon Energy Corp (NYSE:DVN). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on WFC, MPEL, and DVN.

• WFC is starting the week up 0.8% at $49.93, thanks to an upgrade to "buy" from "neutral" at Goldman Sachs. Wells Fargo & Co also scored a price-target hike to $60, as the brokerage opined that WFC is best positioned to deal with negative factors, such as lower oil and a slowing Chinese economy. Meanwhile, Susquehanna cut its price target on the stock to $56 from $60. The shares had a rough start to 2016, off 8.1% so far in the New Year, and while short interest has fallen, option traders have grown more pessimistic. On the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), WFC has racked up a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 0.91 -- higher than 92% of all readings in the past year. The company will report quarterly earnings this Friday.

• After suffering a sharp dip with the broader equities market last week, MPEL is up 5.6% at $14.94, after Morgan Stanley raised its rating on the stock to "overweight" from "equal weight." Casino interests have recently been slipping on concerns that China's economy could continue creating pressure on revenue out of Macau, and both traders and analysts have been accordingly bearish. Six out of nine brokerages say that Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd (ADR) is a "hold" or worse. And on the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX, the stock's 50-day put/call volume ratio of 0.86 is in the highest annual percentile -- meaning option buyers have never been more put-heavy in the past 12 months.

• A mixed bag of analyst notes and lower crude oil prices have DVN trading 1.4% lower at $28.10 this morning. Barclays upgraded the stock to "overweight" from "equal weight," but cut its price target to $36 from $49. SocGen and Susquehanna also slashed their price targets on Devon Energy Corp, to $50 and $45, respectively. The shares hit a 12-year low of $27.45 on Friday, after falling hard throughout December as oil prices slumped. Analysts seem optimistic, though -- of the 18 brokerages following DVN, 13 call it a "buy" or better. Still, option traders are eyeing further downside. DVN has a 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.25 on the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX -- higher than 86% of comparable readings in the past year.