Citi Lifts Target On Ingersoll-Rand (IR)

Citi Investment Research bumped up its price target on Ingersoll-Rand plc IR to $34 from $33 after the company slightly beat earnings. It has a Sell rating on shares. In a note to clients, Citi writes, "We consider Sell-rated IR's 3Q results to be mostly uneventful with a slight pickup in end markets offset by continued price/cost pressure. Higher copper and aluminum costs were a 330 bp drag to margins as the price/cost swung further negative, and we expect this pressure could persist into 4Q. With residential demand still soft, we believe HVAC pricing could be difficult to realize through early 2011. The pace of savings from productivity initiatives has also moderated from the 5.3% 2009 benefit when facility closures were ramping." Shares of IR gained 39 cents on Friday to close at $39.35, a gain of 1%.