More positive coverage!
Aphria
On Friday, Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett initiated coverage on Aphria (NYSE: APHA) with a buy rating and a price target of 15 Canadian dollars ($11.16). Based on the previous day's close, Jefferies foresees up to 74% upside in Aphria's share price. Said Bennett in a note to investors:
On our strategic scorecard Aphria scores highly, and third overall behind only Canopy [Growth] and Aurora [Cannabis]. Despite its strong global outlook, its valuation is the cheapest across our space, with allegations around inflated assets/insider deals weighing.
With these issues now seemingly cleared up, as the company continues to execute, and with likely positive developments on US optionality/Canadian derivatives, we see significant rerating.
The big surprise here is that Aphria, while fundamentally inexpensive, has been a complete mess at the managerial level.
In early December, it was rocked by a short-seller report from Quintessential Capital Management and forensics analysis firm Hindenburg Research, which claimed Aphria had grossly overpaid for Latin American assets that had been purchased by SOL Global investments (the company Aphria purchased these assets from) for mere pennies on the dollar. An independent committee investigated these claims and determined that Aphria had paid a price that was within reason for these assets. However, the committee did uncover that there were conflicts of interests with related parties in this transaction, ultimately leading to a handful of executives, including longtime CEO Vic Neufeld, stepping down.
original link:
https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=2&ved=0ahUKEwiWxJLUk77iAhUHm1kKHWXICeAQqQIIKSgBMAE&url=https%3A%2F%2Ffinance.yahoo.com%2Fnews%2Fwall-street-thinks-buy-2-112100043.html&usg=AOvVaw1uldAEHdaPS3kK-A42V1rk