Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Fertilizer: Merrill Raises POT, MOS, IPI, and TRA to Buy

UPDATE: MarketBeat has more detail in "Analyst Upgrade Seeds Potash Rally"
Original post:
A quick paragraph at Notable Calls:
Temporary buyers strike largely priced in We believe fertilizer fundamentals are nearing a bottom, given nitrogen and phosphate prices have already plunged through breakeven margins for marginal producers, triggering significant shuttered global capacity. The significant deferral in fertilizer applications that occurred this fall can not repeat in the spring if crops are to be planted. We are raising our EV/EBITDA valuation multiples for each nutrient by one multiple point (nitrogen from 2 to 3, phosphate from 3 to 4, and potash from 4 to 5), which are still well below historical levels. Our ratings on POT, MOS, IPI, and TRA are raised to Buys, CF is raised to a Neutral, and AGU remains an Underperform, largely due to a potential large inventory devaluation in its retail business....
...
Notablecalls: Ferts will react to MLCO upgrades....