What Is Going On With These Four Falling Stocks?

The downtrend continues for Cliffs Natural Resources Inc (NYSE:CLF) as its shares are off by another 8%, this time because Deutsche Bank analyst Jorge Beristain downgraded the stock to ‘Sell’ from ‘Hold’ and cut his price target to $1.50 from $3. Given the low iron prices and the company’s ‘strained balance sheet position’, Beristain thinks Cliff’s net present value is now $2.1 per share, down from his previous estimate of $2.7 per share. Cliffs Natural Resources Inc (NYSE:CLF) shares are down more than 75% this year and bulls need Cliffs’ fellow iron ore makers in Australia and Brazil to cut production as quickly as possible. Hedge fund sentiment has been slightly bearish on the stock, as the total number of funds long Cliffs dropped to 17 at the end of September from 19 at the end of June.

Barrick Gold Corporation (USA) (NYSE:ABX) shares are off by 7.7% as the price of the front-month contract of gold is down by over 2.2% in late morning trading. Some investors think gold prices could breach $1,000 per troy ounce given the strong U.S. economy and the fact that the Federal Reserve just raised rates, although whether that actually occurs is anyone’s guess. If gold breaches $1,000, $800 would be an area of strong support. Hedge fund sentiment in Barrick Gold Corporation (USA) (NYSE:ABX) has remained relatively stable, with our data showing that 40 elite funds owned shares of the company on September 30, down modestly from the 42 elite funds that were long the gold miner on June 30.

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