Green Mountain Coffee up after favorable reports

A fresh batch of favorable analyst reports helps lift Green Mountain Coffee

NEW YORK (AP) -- A fresh batch of favorable analyst reports helped send shares of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. higher Wednesday.

Many investors have been concerned that Green Mountain, a pioneer of single-serve machines, would suffer when other companies launched similar products, said Anton Brenner, an analyst at Roth Capital Partners, in a report out Wednesday. But Brenner said Green Mountain has been holding its ground and will likely maintain a dominant share of the growing market.

Brenner also thinks there's a good chance Green Mountain will raise its full-year outlook for sales and profit when it reports results of its fiscal first quarter on Feb. 6. That's one reason he lifted his price target on Green Mountain to $55 from $40. He has a "Buy" rating on the shares.

In another report out Wednesday, Mark Astrachan, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus, raised his earnings estimates for 2013 and 2014, mainly as a result of a drop in coffee costs. Stifel Nicolaus still has a "Sell" rating on the company. Astrachan still thinks that sales of single-serving coffee will slow as fewer people buy the company's brewers.

Through Tuesday's close, Green Mountain's stock had gained 4.7 percent in January. It added another $1.29, or 3 percent, to $44.57 in late trading Wednesday.

Shares have swung wildly over the past 12 months, reaching as high as $71.15 and as low as $17.11.