Activision shares jump on upgrade

Activision broke out of its malaise Thursday, picking up $1.25, or 10 percent, to $13.88 after USB Piper Jaffray upgraded the stock from a "neutral" rating to a "buy."

Activision (Nasdaq: ATVI) and other computer software developers have received favorable comments in recent weeks ahead of the much-ballyhooed release of Sony's PlayStation2 console.

Activision gave its shareholders some good news last quarter when it topped analysts' estimates, posting a loss of $5.2 million, or 21 cents a share, on sales of $84.5 million.

First Call Corp. consensus expects it to earn 9 cents a share in its second quarter and 55 cents a share in the fiscal year.

Activision shares moved up to a 52-week high of $18.25 in February before falling to a low of $5.38 in June.

Six of the seven analysts following the stock rate it either a "buy" or "strong buy."