MLV & Co Sees Multiple Positive Catalysts for Gastar Exploration

In a report published Monday, MLV & Co analyst Chad Mabry reiterated a Buy rating and $11.00 price target on

. In the report, MLV & Co noted, “GST reported Q2'14 adj. EPS of $0.12, beating both the $0.02 consensus and our $0.01 estimate. CFPS of $0.30 also topped the $0.24 consensus and our $0.21. Q2'14 production of 56.8 MMcfe/d (52% gas) was at the high end of guidance and 8% above our forecast on better-than-expected liquids volumes. Note that the company benefited from a $10.6 million arbitration settlement related to a natural gas contract. While we would normally treat this item as non-recurring, in this case we are including it in our numbers as operating expenses were also adjusted, resulting in an apples-and-apples accounting.” Gastar Exploration closed on Friday at $7.44.