The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Sept. 29, edition that ATB Capital Markets analyst Amir Arif has boosted his recommendation for Gear Energy to "outperform" from "sector perform." The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Arif continues to target the shares at $1.50. Analysts on average target Gear Energy shares at $1.20. The Globe says Mr. Arif cites the relative underperformance and widening valuation discount for his rating upgrade. Mr. Arif says in a note: "The stock has meaningfully underperformed the group since the dividend cut announced with second quarter earnings on July 26. Although only 17 per cent of the float has turned over since the dividend cut, the stock has meaningfully underperformed and the relative discount valuation to the sector has widened. ... Gear Energy has underperformed the group by 29 per cent over the past two months alone, despite its higher oil weighting. As a result, the company now trades at 2.7 times 2024 strip EV/DACF [enterprise value to debt-adjusted cash flow]. Additionally, on a consensus forward EV/EBITDA basis, the valuation to the group has widened from a 0.7 times discount to a current 1.7 times turn discount."