Fronteer Development Shares Fall After Downgrade

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Canada-based Fronteer Development Group Inc. slid on Monday, after an analyst said shares of the precious-metals miner have risen to far, prompting him to downgrade the stock.

Shares of the company fell 10 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $4 in afternoon trading. Since the end of April, Fronteer's stock has more than doubled to close at $2.10 on Friday.

After the closing bell on Friday, Canaccord Adams analyst Wendell Zerb cut his rating of the company to "hold" from "speculative buy," citing the stock's recent rally.

Still, Zerb said he foresees continued growth, driven by market strength, improved investor sentiment and rising metal prices. He raised his 12-month price target to $4.95 Canadian dollars ($4.42) from $3.60 Canadian dollars ($3.22).

Zerb praised the company's project portfolio, which he said will likely continue to grow and create additional value.

"In addition, with Fronteer's strong balance sheet, we believe the company could pursue a single or several acquisition opportunities over the next 12 months," Zerb said.

Fronteer has an extensive gold project pipeline in Nevada. Fronteer also has gold, copper and uranium exploration interests in Canada's Yukon territory and copper and gold interests in Turkey.