The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday, July 26, edition that Desjardins Securities analyst Chris MacCulloch has cut his recommendation for Vermilion Energy to "hold" from "buy." The Globe's David Leeder writes that Mr. MacCulloch slashed his share target by $5.50 to $22. Analysts on average target the shares at $25.46. Mr. MacCulloch expects the impact of the wildfires in Western Canada will dominate focus during the coming second quarter earnings season for Canadian energy companies. Mr. MacCulloch says in a note: "While the company has managed to trim debt levels closer to the peer group average on the back of non-core asset dispositions and organic FCF generation, we expect balance sheet repair to continue hindering any near-term acceleration of capital returns. [For reference] we expect Vermilion to continue returning only 25 per cent of FCF to shareholders through the balance of 2023, which significantly lags mid-cap peers. Meanwhile, a string of operational disappointments, including the unplanned disruption of the Wandoo offshore Australia oil asset for more than six months, have negatively impacted cash flow in recent quarters and damaged investor sentiment for the story."