Analysts at Credit Suisse have slapped a neutral rating on shares in coal and metals miner South32 Ltd (ASX: S32). The analysts' share price target of $3.20 is just a few cents above its last closing price of $3.23.
South32 shares are up 32% over the past year as commodity prices gained ground in a phenomenon that was generally attributed to a stronger global economy and inflation lifting off previously low levels. In particular the group has been a big winner from a coal price that went gangbusters over FY 2017.
For the year ending June 30 2017, South 32 posted a net profit of US$1.2 billion on revenues of US$6.95 billion and rewarded investors with a final dividend of US6.4 cents per share. That dividend payout totalled US$334 million and represented around half of the miner's earnings for the six-month period ending June 30, 2017.
