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Schoenfeld, a former Vans chief executive, to replace CEO Sally Frame Kasaks.

"With a new CEO, easier compares in the second half of the year, and new brands that could attract an incremental customer, we believe deep-value investors should begin to look at Pacific Sunwear," Tennant said.

Still, she said the company is reversing many initiatives it started over the past 12 to 18 months, so uncertainties remain, but if sales begin improving, the stock is likely to rise as well.

Abaxis Inc. (ABAX)

SunTrust Robinson Humphrey downgrades to neutral from buy

Shares of blood analysis systems company Abaxis Inc. fell Tuesday after a SunTrust Robinson Humphrey analyst downgraded the stock, pointing to weak sales of Abaxis' Piccolo xpress testing device.

Analyst Jonathan Block said sales of Piccolo systems "dropped precipitously" this year after Abaxis instituted a new sales strategy, and the company will probably need to close some large deals to reach Wall Street's expectations. If that does not happen, the stock price could drop, he said.

Block cut his rating on shares of the Union City, Calif., company to neutral from buy, and trimmed his fiscal 2010 and 2011 profit estimates. He now expects the company to earn 70 cents per share for the year ending in March, down from 71 cents per share, and 90 cents per share the following year, down from 92 cents per share.

On average, Thomson Reuters says analysts expect 71 cents per share in 2010 and 89 cents per share in 2011.

Block said Abaxis' new veterinary products are selling well, and so are its chemistry analyzer products. However he said the stock price will not rise further until sales of the medical products improve. Abaxis shares have climbed 62% over the last year, and peaked at $29.80 on Sept. 17.

Hibbett Sports (HIBB)

Raymond James upgrades to outperform

Sales are likely improving at Hibbett Sports Inc., said Raymond James analyst Dan Wewer, who upgraded the stock to outperform on Tuesday. He also raised his price target to $21.

Wewer wrote in a note to investors that he has "growing confidence" that sales in stores open at least one year, a key retail metric, and margins are "firming" so far in the third quarter. That's a switch from August, when the company reported second-quarter profit fell 77% as sales slipped 6 percent to $123.1 million. At that time the company cut its fiscal 2010 guidance and Wewer downgraded the stock to market perform and set a target price of $18.

But store checks and feedback from suppliers indicate sales have improved sequentially since the beginning of the third quarter, Wewer said. "It appears the sales pick-up is broad based across all merchandise categories," he wrote.

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