Southwestern Energy price target raised to $8.24 from $8 at Citi

Citi raised the firm’s price target on Southwestern Energy (SWN) to $8.24 from $8 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The company is merging with Chesapeake (CHK) to create the largest pure-play domestic natural gas producer, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm favors the deal citing the value increasingly ascribed to both scale and operational efficiency across the producers and the “strong competitive positioning” the pro-forma company will have among peers, especially combined with Citi’s longer-term constructive view of the underlying commodity.