Why Shares of AK Steel Holding Corporation Popped 15% on Wednesday

What: Shares of manufacturer AK Steel Holding Corporation jumped as much as 14.8% in early trading Wednesday after being upgraded by an analyst. Shares Settled to an 11% gain at 11:00 a.m. EDT on Wall Street.

So what: The move was driven by analysts at Credit Suisse upgrading the stock all the way from underperform to outperform. They also doubled their price target from $3.50 to $7.00 per share.

The analysts think higher contracted steep prices in 2017 will help the company generate $510 million in free cash flow over the next two years. And a recent equity offering will help the company de-leverage the balance sheet, alleviating liquidity concerns.

Now what: If AK Steel can hit the free cash flow targets Credit Suisse has predicted, it wouldn't be unreasonable to think the stock has a high potential. But this is also a prediction based on the assumption that steel prices will rise, which investors have been hoping for all year. Until we see real progress on the income statement, I'd be wary of the metals business, because macro demand doesn't seem to be picking up, and with the market oversupplied, the long-term price trend isn't working in AK Steel's favor.

The article Why Shares of AK Steel Holding Corporation Popped 15% on Wednesday originally appeared on Fool.com.

Travis Hoium has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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