RESEARCH ALERT-Goldman lifts China COSCO to buy

Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock rating of China COSCO Holdings (1919.HK: Quote, Profile , Research)(601919.SS: Quote, Profile , Research) to buy from neutral, citing rising dry bulk valuations and the expected injection of the dry bulk business from its parent.

The bank, which added the stock to its conviction buy list, set a price target of HK$17.30 for shares in the shipping conglomerate. China COSCO closed at HK$12.5 on Wednesday.

Goldman said in a research note released on Thursday that the company's plan to issue additional A shares "looks to us like a pre-emptive funding exercise for the widely expected dry bulk injection".

China COSCO shares have jumped 183 percent since the start of the year, far outperforming the 13 percent gain in the benchmark Hang Seng Index <.HSI>.