Scotiabank shakes up ratings and targets in North American natural gas

As previously reported, Scotiabank analyst Cameron Bean upgraded EQT Corporation (EQT) to Outperform with a $52 price target, up from $40, and upgraded Paramount Resources (PRMRF) to Outperform with a C$42 price target, up from C$29, while the firm also downgraded Range Resources (RRC) to Sector Perform with a $45 price target, up from $40, and downgraded Southwestern Energy (SWN) to Sector Perform with a $9.50 price target, up from $9, as the firm refreshed its forecasts on the updated Scotiabank commodity price deck and updated its valuation price decks. The firm, which believes NYMEX prices have bottomed and will slowly trend up over the summer, before strengthening in Q4, has aligned its ratings and targets with its long-term price assumptions of about $70 per barrel WTI and about $4.00/mmtu Henry Hub nat gas prices, the analyst tells investors.