The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Jan. 26, edition that Scotia Capital analyst Phil Hardie has reaffirmed his "sector perform" recommendation for AGF Management. The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Hardie boosted his share target by a loonie to $9.50. Analysts on average target the shares $9.93. Mr. Hardie says in a note: "Q4/23 Op. EPS fell 10 per cent short of Street expectations. ... We are not concerned with the result given the miss was driven by a lower-than-expected contribution from AGF's private capital business which includes gains/losses from its private investments and carried interest which are inherently volatile. ... Management also provided a slightly more favourable cost containment target for 2024 than we anticipated. AGF's high exposure to equities can provide torque in an upward equity market swing, and its strong balance sheet helps provide a floor to the stock. Shares continue to trade at a wide discount relative to peers and offer an attractive 5.4-per-cent dividend yield, but we remain on the sidelines given a challenging operating environment and uncertain market outlook following a strong and unexpected rebound."