Dahlman Rose Reiterates Buy Rating on Taseko Mines Ltd. (TGB)

Dahlman Rose is out with a research report this morning, where it reiterates its Buy rating on Taseko Mines Ltd TGB; it has a $16.58 price target on the stock. The DR analysts cited the company's recent Q4 earnigns and production report, where management hinted that it is eyeing expansion for beyond Phase II and revising its plan for the Prosperity play. The company intends to make further investments in both the mine and the concentrator over the next 20 months. The further improvements will allow the company to process near-term, higher grade ore more efficiently and to optimize mining of the Gibraltar ore body. The company still plans to submit a revised proposal for its Prosperity project, however it did not announce any timeframe. As for valuation, the analysts remarked, “We have adjusted our Gibraltar model for actual production and sales, and for 2011 copper sales guidance. We continue to believe that Gibraltar can be ramped up to 55,000 tpd, but have pushed back full ramp-up until 2H 2011. We believe that the Prosperity project is too big and too important to the Province of BC to not happen.”