Tronox downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital

BMO Capital analyst John McNulty downgraded Tronox (TROX) to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $7, down from $13. While the company’s was modestly better than expected, the implications for Q2 are worse given expectations for high-cost inventories tied to Botlek and the Mining business, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says this also points to a much bigger second half of the year jump in earnings just to hit the lower end of Tronox’s range. In a tough economic backdrop, the stock’s risk/reward skews more negatively, contends BMO.