Air Canada planes are pictured at shown at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport on May 18, 2014.MATTHEW SHERWOOD/The Globe and Mail
Inside the Market's roundup of some of today's key analyst actions. This file will be updated often during the trading day so check back for new details.
Despite a "messy" fourth quarter, Air Canada managed to remain focused on a key objective, says CIBC World Markets analyst Kevin Chiang.
"While AC's Q4 results were a bit messy, they did not detract from the company's bigger picture strategy of lowering its risk profile," says Mr. Chiang. "As the airline continues to execute on its plan, we foresee good upside in the name."
In addition, the airline looks to have a $780-million pension surplus, a far cry from its $4.2-billion deficit in 2012.
Mr. Chiang maintains his "sector outperformer" rating and is boosting his target price by a dollar to $17.50 (Canadian). The analyst consensus price target is $17.93.
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Credit Suisse analyst Anita Soni is upgrading Detour Gold Corp. due to the miner's improved financial outlook.
Ms. Soni's upbeat take stems from the company's recent equity issue, which allows it to alleviate the overhang of the credit facility and use existing cash to remove the handicap of insufficient trucks.
She is upgrading Detour to "outperform" from "neutral" and boosting her target price to $15 from $10. The analyst consensus price target is $12.17.
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Yamana Gold has been downgraded by BMO Capital Markets analyst David Haughton after earnings and guidance came in below expectations.
Yamana reported a fourth-quarter adjusted EPS loss of $0.02, missing Mr. Haughton's estimate of $0.05 and consensus at $0.03.
He is downgrading Yamana to "market perform" from "outperform" and lowering his target price to $5.25 (U.S.) from $6.63. The analyst consensus price target is $6.33.
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Desjardins Capital Markets analyst Doug Young remains upbeat on Sun Life Financial despite disappointing quarterly results.
Mr. Young believes Sun Life has the most attractive wealth management franchise of any Canadian lifeco or bank he covers. "In Canada, it has a dominant group franchise, it has taken market share in individual insurance and is successfully building out an asset management platform," he says. "Additionally, we see management prudently deploying $1.3-billion in excess cash over the medium term, which could drive core EPS and ROE expansion."
He maintains his "buy" rating and $46 (Canadian) target price. The analyst consensus price target is $44.27.
Meanwhile, Sun Life was downgraded to "neutral" from "outperform" by Macquarie.
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Healthy growth in the global gambling market has spurred Cantor Fitzgerald Canada Research analyst Ralph Garcea to initiate coverage of Amaya Inc.
Mr. Garcea cites a report by Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBGC) that pegs 2013 global gambling revenue at roughly $451-billion (U.S.) and foresees a compound annual growth rate of 3.5 per cent.
He suggests investors own Amaya, a provider of technology-based products and services in the gaming industry, for its strong management team with experience in M&A transactions.
"Amaya will be looking to divest of some assets to help pay down debt, and may look at a Sportsbook transaction to gain scale quickly in the largest segment of the online gambling market," he says.
Mr. Garcea has a "buy" rating on Amaya with a price target of $50. The analyst consensus price target for Amaya Inc. over the next year is $42.83.
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In other analyst actions
Siemens AG was cut to "underweight" from "equal weight" at Morgan Stanley.
Baidu Inc. was lowered to "hold" from "buy" over at Stifel.
Tesla Motors Inc. was cut to "underweight" from "neutral" by JPMorgan.
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. was raised to "strong buy" from "outperform" at Raymond James with a target price of $41 (U.s.) per share.
Kirkland Lake Gold Inc. was raised to "sector perform" from "sector underperform" at CIBC with a target price of $4.50 (Canadian) per share.
KKR & Co. LP was downgraded to "hold" from "buy" at Argus.
Owens Corning was downgraded to "market perform" from "outperform" at FBR Capital Markets with a target price of $39 (U.S.) per share.
Prudential Financial Inc. was downgraded to "sector perform" from "outperform" at RBC Capital with a target price of $88 (U.S.) per share.
Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc. was rated new "outperform" at RBC Capital with a target price of $31 (U.S.) per share.
TAG Oil Ltd. was downgraded to "hold" from "buy" at Mackie Research Capital with a target price of $1.85 (Canadian) per share.
WesternOne Inc. was downgraded to "sector perform" from "outperform" at National Bank with a target price of $2 (Canadian) per share.
zulily Inc. was downgraded to "hold" from "buy" at Canaccord Genuity with a target price of $18 (U.S.) per share. The stock was downgraded to "neutral" from "overweight" at Piper Jaffray with a target price of $15 (U.S.). The stock was downgraded to "neutral" from "outperform" at Robert Baird with a target price of $18 (U.S.). The stock was downgraded to "sector perform" from "outperform" at RBC Capital with a target price of $18 (U.S.) per share. It was downgraded to "market perform" from "outperform" at William Blair. It was also downgraded to "fairly valued" from "buy" at CRT Capital with a target price of $16 (U.S.) per share.
With files from Bloomberg News