The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Oct. 1, edition that BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Bert Powell has boosted his rating on Brookfield Asset Management ($41.99 (Canadian)) to "outperform" from "market perform." The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Powell elevated his price target to $40 (U.S.) from $38 (U.S.). Analysts on average target the Class A shares at $37.76 (U.S.). The analyst says the recent share price weakness of the public affiliates of Brookfield Asset Management is more than reflected in its own share price. The BMO stockpicker says it is "indicating a disproportionate decline in the value of the asset management franchise." Mr. Powell says, "We believe the asset management business is more defensive and arguably faster growing than the market is implying and deserves a higher valuation than currently being assigned by the market." The analyst believes fee-related earnings "are stickier and have more torque than is being discounted in the stock." Mr. Powell says, "Investors do not fully appreciate the power of the incentive distribution rights" and feels that fee stream can advance more rapidly than the other fee streams.