EYE ON EQUITIES / / STOCKS THAT SHOULD BE ON YOUR RADAR SCREEN
DOMTAR CORP. / (UFS-NYSE)
Thursday's close
$52.06 U.S., up $3.56
Domtar Corp., a producer of uncoated freesheet paper and paper-grade market pulp, is generating strong cash flow and paying off debt in a business backstopped by a resilient white-paper market, said Daryl Swetlishoff, an analyst with Raymond James.
Upside: The shares are reiterated "strong buy" with a price target of $85 (U.S.) and forecast 2010 profit of $7.31 a share.
PRECISION DRILLING CORP. / (PD-TSX)
Thursday's close
$7.60, down 20¢
Precision Drilling Corp. has "shored up and its balance sheet and has the capacity to start building again," said UBS Securities Canada analyst Chad Friess. Its 2010 capital spending program is comprised of $121-million for maintenance and $68-million for nine new drill rigs.
Upside: The shares are reiterated "buy" with a price target $10.50. The share profit is forecast at 49 cents in 2010 and 74 cents in 2011.
FREEPORT-MCMORAN COPPER & GOLD / FCX-NYSE)
Thursday's close
$68.78 U.S.,up $2.72
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. has a capital spending budget of $1.7-billion (U.S.) and "it has sufficient cash on its balance sheet to do so," said John Redstone, an analyst with Desjardins Securities.
Upside: Its share profit is forecast at $6.39 (U.S.) in 2010 and $10.17 in 2011. The shares are reiterated "buy" with a price target of $122 (U.S.).
APACHE CORP. / (APA-NYSE)
Thursday's close
$89.28 U.S., up $1.83
Apache Corp. has agreed to acquire from BP, for $7-billion (U.S.), oil and gas properties in Canada, the United States and Egypt, increasing its reserves 15 per cent. Production from the acquired assets could be increased 30 per cent over the next 12 months, said Citigroup Global Markets analyst Robert Morris.
Upside: The share profit is forecast at $10.02 in 2010 and $12.18 in 2011. The price target is $130.
VICWEST INCOME FUND / (VIC.UN-TSX)
Thursday's close
$13, up 4¢
Vicwest Income Fund is likely to experience a challenging period for its Westeel storage division as a result of the wet conditions in the Prairies, leading to weaker demand for it agricultural bin installations, said Robert Winslow, an analyst with Wellington West Capital Markets.
Downside: The 2010 unit profit forecast was reduced to $1.75 from $1.92 and the price target lowered by $1 to $19.
SOURCE / BLOOMBERG
