UPDATE: Goldman Sachs Upgrades Cliffs Natural Resources to Neutral, Reiterates $20 PT on Balanced Risk-Reward

In a report published Wednesday, Goldman Sachs analyst Sal Tharani upgraded the rating on Cliffs Natural Resources

from Sell to Neutral, and reiterated the $20.00 price target. In the report, Tharani noted, “We upgrade CLF to Neutral from Sell and maintain our six-month P/E-, EV/EBITDA- and DCF-based target price of $20, implying 7% downside. Since the time of our downgrade, CLF has cut its dividends, issued new equity, written down its Canadian assets and idled its high-cost pellet plant at Wabush. After recent underperformance, near-term risk-reward appears more balanced and thus we upgrade the stock. Since being added to the Sell List on November 20, 2012, CLF is down 30% vs. a 13% increase in the S&P 500. Over the past 12 months, CLF is down 70% vs. a 10% increase in the S&P 500.” Cliffs Natural Resources closed on Tuesday at $21.43.