Ahead of the Market

Today’s stocks to watch

* Comverse Technology (ticker: CMVT; Tuesday close: $44.38): The maker of computers and telecommunications systems’ earnings for the second quarter ended July 31 were 55 cents a diluted share, beating the 52-cent average estimate of analysts polled by First Call. Shares rose $2.31.

* Exxon (XON, $70.38): The oil company will idle a crude processing unit at its Baton Rouge, La., refinery in early October for planned maintenance, traders said. Exxon declined to comment on plans for work at the 450,000-barrel-a-day refinery, the company’s largest and the ninth-biggest in the world. Shares fell 19 cents.

* Regions Financial (RGBK, $36.88): The bank will replace DSC Communications in the S&P; 500 index after the close of trading Thursday. DSC is being acquired. Regions shares rose 13 cents.

* Tellabs (TLAB, $58): The maker of products that direct traffic on phone networks said a directors’ meeting to discuss the company’s pending $5.95-billion acquisition of Ciena--thought to be in jeopardy--ended and no announcement is planned. Shares fell 6 cents.

Reporting quarterly earnings today

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Company Ticker Tues. price Per-share estimate* Northfield Laboratories NFLD $12.75 $--0.18 Remec REMC 8.94 +0.04 Harnischfeger Industries HPH 20.25 --0.16 Maxim Group MXG 20.25 +0.29 Norrell NRL 15.31 +0.39 Sunrise Medical SMD 10.44 --0.01 Superior Telecom SUT 33.75 +0.74 Toro TTC 22.75 +0.37

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*Consensus from IBES International

Analyst revisions and new ratings

* BAT Industries (ticker: BTI; Tuesday close: $20.88) was rated “strong buy” in new coverage by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.

* Championship Auto Racing (MPH, $21) was rated “buy” in new coverage by NationsBanc Montgomery Securities.

* Hollywood Park (HPK, $10.81) was rated “buy” in new coverage by Lehman Bros., with a 12-month target price of $17.

* Kellogg (K, $32.19) was raised to “buy” from “hold” by Deutsche Bank Securities, with a 12-month target price of $40.

* Silicon Gaming (SGIC, $4.25) was downgraded to “hold” from “buy” by CIBC Oppenheimer.

* Tele-Communications International (TINTA, $22) was downgraded to “market outperform” from “recommend list” by Goldman Sachs.

* 3Com (COMS, $30) was raised to “buy” from “hold” by Gerard Klauer Mattison, with a 12-month target price of $39.