NEW YORK and ZURICH, Switzerland, April 28, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- The following is an investment opinion issued by Investrend Research Syndicate:
Ernest C. Schlotter, analyst at Investrend affiliate SISM Research, has reiterated his Speculative Buy/4 Rating for International PetroReal (TSX Venture Exchange:IOC); however, the price target has been reduced from $1.80 to $1.40.
In a Research Note, SISM analysts mentioned the Company's failure to acquire the West Bay property. The expected acquisition of this property was unsuccessful, in part, when one of the lenders failed to provide sufficient debt financing in a timely manner as agreed upon. SISM adjusted its revenue forecast for FY2004 significantly from C$25.4M to C$5.8M and to reduce the EPS for FY2004 from $0.29 to $0.07. The P/E estimate for 2004 is 20.0x.
According to SISM Research, International PetroReal's failure to acquire the entire West Bay field is a short-term, but large disappointment for its shareholders. The Company, however, is still in discussions to acquire a further working interest in the field over the next 12 months. SISM has seen very positive developments in the Clovelly and the Little White Lake properties with a combined contribution of approx. 186 barrels of oil equivalent to a total of 485 barrels per day beginning in the third quarter of FY04.
Furthermore, ORX Resources Inc. is working with International PetroReal on the acquisition of another property and is cooperative and flexible in structuring the right deal with International PetroReal on West Bay. "We have lowered our 12-month price target from $1.80 to $1.40 and reaffirm our Speculative Buy/4 Rating for the shares of International PetroReal," stated Ernest Schlotter, head analyst at SISM.
SISM Research, based in Zurich, Switzerland, is a private investment research firm offering high-quality, independent, fundamental research on public companies since 1995. SISM writes, publishes and distributes investment research coverage, in both English and German, on micro- to small-cap public companies trading on the OTC Bulletin Board, NASDAQ and AMEX. This coverage is geared toward institutional and individual investors in both North America and in German-speaking Europe, a market that represents more than 100 million people. SISM Research is a content provider to Thomson Financials OneAnalytics/FirstCall, to Multex and InvesTrend.
SISM Research is an affiliate of Investrend Research and both subscribe to the "Standards for Independent Research Providers" at http://www.firstresearchconsortium.com.
International PetroReal Oil Corporation paid SISM Research a retainer of $5,000, plus $1,750 per month over a two-year period solely to ensure independent coverage.
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