UPDATE: Jefferies Downgrades Metabolix to Hold, Lowers PT to $4

Jefferies lowers it rating on Metabolix MBLX to Hold from Buy and lowers its price target to $4 from $9 on lack of forward visibility. Jefferies says, "The termination of Telles by ADM (ADM, $29.14, NC) illustrates one of the challenges faced by the capital-intensive renewables sector: low returns on a first project can destabilize a JV. While the decision taints assessments of the PHA polymer adoption curve, Metabolix still has options, notably the CJ partnership. With little visibility on timing and value capture, we are lowering our rating to Hold from Buy and our PT $5 to $4." BMLX closed at $5.99 per share on Thursday.