The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that Scotia Capital analyst Phil Hardie has reaffirmed his "sector perform" ranking for AGF Management. The Globe's David Leeder writes that Mr. Hardie edged his share target ahead by 25 cents to $9. Analysts on average target the shares at $9.14. Mr. Hardie believes AGF is facing a "challenging backdrop" that will see flows turn negative when it reports third quarter financial results on Sept. 27. Mr. Hardie says in a note: "We forecast AGF to post net redemption of $124-million, ending its solid run of 11 consecutive months of positive flows amid the tough industry operating environment. That said, we expect full-year net flows to remain up in 2023 and 2024. The strong market performance early in Q3/F23 resulted in a higher average AUM balance that is likely to provide a favourable tailwind on management fee earned. ... We believe key areas of focus for the quarter are likely to be: 1) AUM and sales outlook given current market volatility and pressure in industry-wide net sales, 2) quarterly SG&A and any further updates to the full-year expense guidance, 3) the impact on management fee margins from recent price changes, and 4) potential update on M&A."