Stonecap Securities ups target prices for Argonaut Gold, Orvana and St Andrew Goldfields

Stonecap Securities Monday increased the target prices on a number of precious metals-focused junior miners as the broker increased its near-term forecast for gold but kept its silver forecast unchanged.
In a research note, Stonecap increased its forecast for gold in 2012 and 2013 to $1,600 an ounce from $1,450 and $1,400 respectively. For silver, Stonecap is keeping its 2012 and 2013 forecasts unchanged at $38 an ounce.
In a research note, mining analyst Christos Doulis said: "We are bullish on precious metals in the short and medium terms based on ongoing relative currency devaluations, continued financial market uncertainty and central bank demand, represented by recent increases in purchases of bullion."
Doulis said that while the markets have recovered from their first-half 2009 lows, a considerable air of uncertainty and fear persists among the general public, particularly in light of recent news that the economic recovery seems to be much weaker than initially hoped for.
Continued negative economic news is likely to increase the appeal of precious metals as a store of value and provide ongoing upward price momentum for precious metals, the Stonecap analyst said.
"We believe current weak conditions for precious metals equities represent a buying opportunity for those with patience and a tolerance for volatility," Doulis explained.
"We recommend investing in quality precious metal producers that have demonstrated the ability to generate positive cash flow and have low cost structures per ounce of metal produced, such as Argonaut (TSE:AR) and Revett (TSE:RVM)."
Indeed, Stonecap increased its price target on Argonaut Gold to $8.70 from $8.40, reflecting recent production growth from La Colorada and El Castillo, keeping its "outperform" rating on the stock.
For Revett Minerals, Stonecap has an "outperform" rating and an $8.60 target,"as development of Rock Creek provides the ultimate value for Revett", Stonecap said.

For Orvana Minerals (TSE:ORV), Stonecap increased the target price to $2.90 from $2.80 with recent emerging production from the company's EVBC project, also maintaining an "outperform" rating.
Stonecap has a "sector perform" rating on St Andrew Goldfields (TSE:SAS) as it increased the target price to $0.90 from $0.85, reflecting recent production growth. The capital markets firm assumes production will grow to 106,000 ounces in 2012, from 73,000 ounces in 2011.
The Canada-focused gold producer saw record output in the third quarter from its three mining operations in northeastern Ontario, with profit nearly doubling.
Monday morning, Argonaut was trading up 2.57 percent to $6.39, Revett was up over seven percent to $5.02, Orvana Minerals was up 4.31 percent to $1.21 and St Andrew Goldfields rose four percent to 52 cents.