Wall St. Watchdog reveals information about companies for which stock analysts initiated coverage in the Basic Materials sector for the week ending December 23rd, 2011.

Stone Energy (NYSE:SGY): Rodman & Renshaw initiated coverage of this company with a rating of Mkt Outperform and a price target of $32 >> $34 on Dec 20th. The shares recently traded at $25.89, up $1.08, or 4.35% since the analyst’s rating. About the company: Stone Energy Corporation is an independent oil and gas company. The Company acquires, explores, develops, and operates oil and gas properties onshore and offshore in the Gulf Coast Basin. Get the most recent company news and stock data here >>

Southwestern Energy (NYSE:SWN): Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage of this company with a rating of Buy and a price target of $45 >> $40 on Dec 20th. The shares recently traded at $32.89, up $0.03, or 0.09% since the analyst’s rating. About the company: Southwestern Energy Company is an independent energy company primarily focused on natural gas and crude oil exploration, development and production (E&P) within the United States. The Company operations also include natural gas gathering, transmission, and marketing, as well as natural gas distribution. Get the most recent company news and stock data here >>

Vanguard Natural Resources (NYSE:VNR): Wunderlich initiated coverage of this company with a rating of Buy and a price target of $28 >> $33 on Dec 21st. The shares recently traded at $27.72, up $0.75, or 2.78% since the analyst’s rating. About the company: Vanguard Natural Resources LLC. is an independent natural gas and oil company. The Company develops and exploits mature, long-lived natural gas and oil properties. Get the most recent company news and stock data here >>

(Note: Selected financial data are sourced from Briefing.com via the Wall St. Journal. All data are assumed to be accurate.)

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