They often need to be taken with a grain of salt, but broker recommendations can also be a good place to start generating some new investment ideas.
One company that appears to be on UBS's radar is liver cancer treatment business Sirtex Medical Limited (ASX: SRX), which provided an updated guidance on sales of its radioactive microspheres treatment yesterday. The company said it expects sales to rise 16.4% over the prior corresponding period, putting it at the upper end of the target range of 15% to 17% provided last month.
The shares did trade for as much as $41.33 late last year, but have since tracked back down to $27.88 as at yesterday's close. UBS thinks it can get back to that high and then some, putting a $44 price target on the shares.
Compared to shares of Sirtex, Capilano Honey Ltd (ASX: CZZ) has enjoyed a more consistent run in 2016 and did briefly peak above $23 a share in May, but shares now fetch $20.22. According to Dow Jones Newswires, Canaccord Genuity has raised its target price on the shares by 4.5% to $22.50, while Morgans recently raised its own target by 6% to $23.10.
Resources giant BHP Billiton Limited (ASX: BHP) also got the nod from Citi which, according to Dow Jones Newswires, has increased its target price by 7.7% to $21.00 per share. That's up from today's price of $19.60.
BHP Billiton shares experienced a sharp fall earlier in the year as a result of crashing oil and iron ore prices, but have since recovered much of their losses. Both resources have rebounded strongly (although they remain well below their highs from recent years), with Citi apparently confident that investors could be in for further gains in the near future.
Of the three businesses mentioned, Sirtex Medical is the most attractive option today, in my opinion. Considering the nature of the biopharmaceutical industry, it is by no means a risk-free bet, but it could prove reasonably priced at its current level if it can maintain double-digit growth over the coming years.
