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Kash Pashootan, Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at First Avenue Advisory, Raymond James breaks down CIBC's latest quarter.

Inside the Market's roundup of some of today's key analyst actions. This file will be updated during the trading day.

The outlook is bright for Canada's Big Six banks, with Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce showing particular promise, according to Scotiabank Equity Research analyst Sumit Malhotra.

"The strong run-up in the TSX Bank Index (+13% YTD, +29% YoY) has been underpinned by the solid operating performance of the sector, a relationship that we believe will again be on display in the upcoming Q3/14 results," says Mr. Malhotra. "With a robust backdrop for market-sensitive revenue (we see 18% YoY growth) leading the way, our estimates have the banks posting a 7% increase in operating EPS, alongside dividend hikes from BNS and RY."

He goes on to say that in his view, CIBC is currently the pick of a very strong bunch.

"After the increase to our EPS estimates and target price, [CIBC] shares are implying a 15% total return, the strongest in our bank coverage at this time. Additionally, we are of the view that (1) consensus estimates are too low for CM (both for Q3 and 2015); (2) the implied 12% discount on CM shares on our 2015E can narrow to 8%; (3) based on our 2015E of a 11.33% CET1 ratio CM has $5.73 in excess capital per share; and (4) as per the OSFI balance sheet update for June the Retail & Business Banking trends are showing improvement in the consumer loan book faster than we (and we suspect the market) expected."

Mr. Malhotra is upgrading CIBC to "sector outperform" from "sector perform" and raising his target price to $114 (Canadian) from $106. The analyst consensus price target is $104.81, according to Thomson Reuters.

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Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.'s aggressive growth-through-acquisition campaign will be in the spotlight when the company reports its fiscal first quarter earnings in two weeks, Canaccord Genuity analyst Derek Dley said.

By the end of 2015, the company should be able to meet its target of $150-million (Canadian) to $200-million in synergies related to the 2012 acquisition of Scandinavia's Statoil Fuel & Retail, the analyst said.

There will also likely be questions about the company's next big potential acquisition.

On Tuesday, reports placed Couche-Tard on the shortlist to buy a $16-billion (U.S) minority stake in China's Sinopec Sales, the world's largest fuel retailer. The company denied it was pursuing Sinopec.

"We believe acquisitions remain at the forefront of Couche-Tard's growth strategy," Mr. Dley said, noting that the company has reduced debt to well below its acquisition threshold. "However, we note completion of such a large transaction could be challenging for the company."

The deal would be roughly the same size as Couche-Tard itself, which has a market capitalization of about $17.5-billion (Canadian).

"A sizeable equity issuance would be needed to complete this size of a transaction," Mr. Dley said. He raised his target price on Couche-Tard's stock to $36 (Canadian) from $33, while maintaining a "buy" rating. The analyst consensus price target is $31.15, according to Thomson Reuters.

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An alliance with AltaGas will help Painted Pony Petroleum Ltd. to develop a resource in Alberta and B.C., says CIBC World Markets analyst Adam Gill.

Painted Pony has announced a 15-year strategic alliance with AltaGas for the development of its Montney resource, explains Mr. Gill.

"PPY reserves 150 MMcf/d (25,000 Boe/d) of firm capacity in the facility, expected on-stream in Q1/16. PPY now guides to 2016 avg production of 46,000 Boe/d with 60 Montney wells and $499 MM of capex, a huge ramp up from 22,000 Boe/d, 37 Montney wells and $317 MM of capex in 2015," he says, in a research note.

"We see the alliance as positive as it provides confidence of funding certainty from a reputable partner, freeing CF for accelerated resource development, while maintaining a clean balance sheet. We have increased our 2015 production and CFPS estimates by 9% and 5%, respectively."

Mr. Gill maintains a "sector outperformer" rating and $15 (Canadian) price target. The analyst consensus price target is $17.50, according to Thomson Reuters.

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Bird Construction Inc.'s stock is due for a pause after rallying substantially this month, Dundee Securities analyst Maxim Sytchev said.

As of Tuesday's market close, Bird's share price was up by 15 per cent in less than three weeks, possibly as a result of quicker-than-expected "margin normalization," Mr. Sytchev said.

"While we do not dispute the track record of Bird's management team, we don't see the stock climbing materially higher from these levels as the normalization thesis is firmly impounded in the Street's expectations at this point."

He downgraded the stock to "neutral" from "buy" and reiterated his $16 (Canadian) target price.

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AutoCanada Inc. is on track to meet or exceed its acquisition targets, Canaccord Genuity analyst Derek Dley said.

On Tuesday, the auto dealership group announced the purchase of an Edmonton-based Chevrolet dealership. The company's guidance of another eight to 10 acquired dealerships this year is likely conservative, Mr. Dley said.

"In our view, AutoCanada continues to have a large pipeline of potential acquisitions," he said. "AutoCanada continues to expand its presence in Western Canada, which we believe is an attractive market given the strong economy, and greater proportion of higher-margin truck sales."

He reiterated a "buy" rating and an $88 (Canadian) target price on AutoCanada's stock.

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In other analyst actions:

Delek Logistics Partners LP was upgraded to "outperform" from "market perform" at Wells Fargo by equity analyst Michael Blum.

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. was downgraded to "neutral" from "overweight" at JPMorgan by equity analyst Kevin Milota. The 3-month target price is $25.00 (U.S.) per share.

JetBlue Airways Corp. was upgraded to "outperform" from "market perform" at Cowen by equity analyst Helane Becker. The 12-month target price is $15.00 (U.S.) per share.

Kinaxis Inc. was rated new "buy" at TD Securities by equity analyst Scott Penner. The 12-month target price is $22.00 (Canadian) per share.

Leucrotta Exploration Inc. was rated new "buy" at Canaccord Genuity by equity analyst Anthony Petrucci. The 12-month target price is $3.00 (Canadian) per share.

Real Goods Solar Inc. was downgraded to "neutral" from "buy" at Roth Capital by equity analyst Philip Shen. The 12-month target price is $1.85 (U.S.) per share.

Cia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo was downgraded to "sell" from "hold" at Brean Capital by equity analyst Michael Gaugler. The 12-month target price is $15.00 (BRL) per share.

Skullcandy Inc. was upgraded to "buy" from "neutral" at DA Davidson by equity analyst Andrew Burns. The 18-month target price is $10.00 (U.S.) per share.

Strategic Oil & Gas Ltd. was rated new "buy" at Cormark Securities by equity analyst Garett Ursu. The 12-month target price is C$0.75 per share.

SunCoke Energy Inc. was downgraded to "neutral" from "outperform" at Credit Suisse by equity analyst Nathan Littlewood. The target price is $26.00 (U.S.) per share.

United Community Banks Inc/GA was upgraded to "buy" from "neutral" at SunTrust Robinson by equity analyst Jennifer Demba. The 12-month target price is $19.00 (U.S.) per share.

With files from Bloomberg News

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