| Company Name | Exchange | Ticker | Last Price | Total Analyst Coverage |
Upgrade/ Downgrade |
Analyst Name | Rating Company | Target Price |
Upside/ Downside (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major Drilling Group International Inc | TSX | MDI | 9.68 | 10 | Upgrade to buy from hold | Kam Mangat | Salman Partners | 10.00 | 3.3% |
| Avalon Rare Metals Inc | TSX | AVL | 0.81 | 5 | Upgrade to speculative buy from hold | Luisa Moreno | Euro Pacific Canada Inc | 1.45 | 79.0% |
| Africa Oil Corp | TSXV | AOI | 8.59 | 23 | Upgrade to buy/attractive from neutral/attractive | Ruth Brooker | Goldman Sachs | 12.12 | 41.1% |
| Finning International Inc | TSX | FTT | 31.00 | 14 | Initiate with sector outperform | Jacob Bout | CIBC World Markets | 35.00 | 12.9% |
| Argent Energy Trust | TSX | AET-U | 6.07 | 8 | Downgrade to sector perform from outperform | Shailender Randhawa | RBC Capital Markets | 7.00 | 15.3% |
Salman Partners upgraded Major Drilling Group International Inc (TSX: MDI), a drilling service company primarily serving the mining industry, to buy from hold increasing its price target to C$10.00 from C$7.00, indicating an upside of 3.3% from current levels. The rating firm cited company’s improving gross margins and strong balance sheet as a catalyst for the price growth.
Avalon Rare Metals Inc (TSX: AVL), a Canada-based mineral exploration and development company, was upgraded to speculative buy from hold at Euro Pacific Canada Inc with a price target of C$1.45, indicating an upside of 79% from current levels.
Goldman Sachs upgraded Africa Oil Corp (TSXV: AOI), a Canada-based international oil and gas exploration and development company, to buy/attractive from neutral/attractive increasing its price target to C$12.12 from C$11.56, indicating an upside of 41.1% from current levels.
CIBC World Markets initiated coverage on Finning International Inc (TSX: FTT), a provider of sales, rental, parts and support services for Caterpillar Inc, with a sector outperform rating assigning a 12-month price target of C$35.00, indicating an upside of 12.9% from current levels.
RBC Capital Markets downgraded (TSX: AET-U), a Canada-based open-ended trust focused on acquiring, exploiting and developing long-life crude oil and natural gas reserves, to sector perform from outperform lowering its price target to C$7.00 from C$9.00, indicating an upside of 15.3% from current levels.
| Company Name | Exchange | Ticker | Last Price |
Total Analyst Coverage |
Upgrade/ Downgrade |
Analyst Name | Rating Company | Target Price |
Upside/ Downside (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc | NASDAQ | ZIOP | 4.45 | 6 | Upgrade to neutral from underweight | Charles C Duncan | Piper Jaffray | 4.00 | -10.1% |
| Valley National Bancorp | NYSE | VLY | 10.24 | 11 | Upgrade to market perform from underperform | Collyn Bement Gilbert | Keefe, Bruyette & Woods | 9.50 | -7.2% |
| DST Systems Inc | NYSE | DST | 94.91 | 6 | Upgrade to overweight from equalweight | David M Togut | Evercore Partners | 113.00 | 19.1% |
| Tenneco Inc | NYSE | TEN | 61.88 | 15 | Initiate with buy | Colin Langan | UBS | 70.00 | 13.1% |
| Watts Water Technologies Inc | NYSE | WTS | 60.26 | 14 | Downgrade to underperform from market perform | Joseph Giordano | Cowen and Company | 50.00 | -17.0% |
Piper Jaffray upgraded ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc (NASDAQ: ZIOP), a biotechnology company, to neutral from underweight increasing its price target to $4.00 from $1.00, indicating a downside of 10.1% from current levels. Recently, ZIOP reported its fourth quarter and full year 2013 earnings. For the quarter, net loss decreased to $8.9 million or 9 cents per share from earlier loss of $30.2 million or 37 cents per share during the fourth quarter of 2012. For the full year, losses reduced to $57.1 million or 66 cents per share from losses of $96.1 million or $1.22 per share in 2012.
Valley National Bancorp (NYSE: VLY), a bank holding company, was upgraded to market perform from underperform at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising its price target to $9.50 from $8.50, indicating a downside of 7.2% from current levels.
Evercore Partners upgraded DST Systems Inc (NYSE: DST), a provider of technology-based service solutions, to overweight from equal-weight raising its price target to $113.00 from $96.00, indicating an upside potential of 19.1% from current levels.
UBS initiated coverage on Tenneco Inc (NYSE: TEN), a producer of emission control and ride control products and systems for light, commercial and specialty vehicle applications, with a buy rating assigning a 12-month price target of $70.00, indicating an upside of 13.1% from current levels.
Cowen and Company downgraded Watts Water Technologies Inc (NYSE: WTS), a supplier of products for use in the water quality, water safety, water flow control and water conservation, to underperform from market perform reducing its price target to $50.00 from $52.00, indicating a downside of 17% from current levels.
