SunTrust analyst James Sheehan upgraded American Vanguard to Buy and increased its price target to $18 from $14. The analyst said American Vanguard's new strategic partnership with an established Chinese ag chem producer is significant and will greatly enhance market access and technology development. The joint venture better positions the company to bid for products likely to be sold by consolidating crop chemical giants given the partners larger balance sheet, Sheehan wrote. In addition, Sheehan said the core US corn business appears to be stabilizing.