The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Feb. 2, edition that BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst John Gibson views the energy service landscape "as the place to be." The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Gibson says in a note: "While predicting rig counts is a bit of a mug's game, we believe North American activity levels have likely bottomed. At the same time, the drawdown in drilled-but-uncompleted wells, combined with more intense drilling/completion techniques, continues to drive U.S. production to new records. Overall, we don't believe these trends can continue to persist without an eventual pickup in drilling activity (although timing remains uncertain). In the meantime, however, resilient pricing levels combined with rising production is benefitting our coverage group as financial results have remained solid despite ebbs and flows in activity levels." Accordingly, Mr. Gibson boosted his share target for Mullen Group by a loonie to $16. He continues to rate the shares "market perform." Analysts on average target the shares at $44.89. The Globe reported on July 21 that Mr. Gibson had reaffirmed his "market perform" recommendation for Mullen Group. The shares could then be had for $16.01.