UPDATE 1-RESEARCH ALERT-Barclays cuts Pactiv, ups Sealed Air
Oct 20 (Reuters) - Barclays downgraded Pactiv Corp (PTV.N), a packaging products maker, on rising raw material costs and a weak dollar, but upgraded rival Sealed Air Corp (SEE.N) on a potential recovery in protective packaging.
Analyst Peter Ruschmeier lowered his rating on Pactiv to "equal weight" from "overweight," saying higher resin costs in the second half of the year will likely stall or reverse the impressive margin performance seen in the first half.
"Recent weakness in the U.S. dollar is a relative positive for PTV's peers, but a relative negative for PTV since most of all their operations are in the U.S," Ruschmeier wrote.
The analyst upgraded Sealed Air to "equal weight" from "underweight."
Ruschmeier, who expects Pactiv to report third-quarter earnings of 52 cents a share, raised his price target on the stock to $28 from $27.
The analyst lifted his price target on Sealed Air shares to $22 from $16, and said he expects the company to report third-quarter earnings of 35 cents a share.
Shares of Sealed Air closed at $20.55 Monday on the New York Stock Exchange, while those of Pactiv closed at $27.23. (Reporting by Matthias Williams in Bangalore; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
