AuthenTec, Inc. stock was upgraded from “Outperform” to “Strong Buy” by Raymond James Financial on Thursday (June 12th). The announcement fueled a rapid appreciation of 12.3 percent for the day.

AuthenTec itself has been growing by leaps and bounds, seeing a 67 percent revenue increase in the first quarter of 2008. In a recent conference call held to discuss the quarter ended March 31st, the company expressed the belief that 2008 revenues will only continue to grow. It is estimated that earnings for the second quarter will total more than $17.2 million, as a result of large-volume shipments of the company’s “AES 2810″ PC fingerprint-authentication product. It has also been reported that Intel’s Montevina laptops will come equipped with the AES 2810 sensors, to begin shipping in the second half of 2008.

In addition, AuthenTec has announced its intent to step up research and development efforts in a play for an

Many industrial projects require long lead times and massive amounts of cash. Following and pushing them through to the finish is often taxing and frustrating. If a company can find and retain a group of experienced managers to push through to the end, they will find that the rewards are large and profitable.

Raven Biofuels International Corp., a development stage biomass-products refiner, is working to bring waste-product refinery capacity online. The company is currently in talks to secure financing and merge with companies oriented toward developing leading edge bio-mass gasoline products. By all accounts, the company is making positive progress in these two areas.

The ultimate short term-five year goal of the company is refining 100 million gallons of biofuel gasoline. To achieve these goals the company has engaged in merger talks with Pure Energy Inc. and formed a partnership with Spectrum Energy, a British Columbia company familiar with cellulose