BofA Securities upgraded Sigma Lithium Corp. (NASDAQ: SGML) from Underperform to Neutral and set a price target of $14.00, citing the company's recent decision to resume mining as a key factor in the reassessment. The research house noted the stock has been highly volatile, falling more than 20% over the past week despite a 112.5% gain over the previous six months.
The upgrade follows an announcement by Sigma Lithium late last week that it has restarted mining operations. BofA said this development "meaningfully reduces the risk of further slippage to the timeline for producing sellable volumes," suggesting the company is on a clearer path toward its production milestones.
Market data from InvestingPro referenced by BofA indicates that SGML typically experiences elevated price swings, and the service offers additional ProTips intended to help investors manage that volatility.
Despite the operational improvement represented by the restart, BofA cautioned that Sigma continues to face liquidity risk while it progresses through what the firm estimates will be a roughly three-month ramp to reach sellable nameplate production. During this interval, the company s cash generation may depend on "lower margin tailings sales and potential capital injections," according to the research note.
Two ongoing operational challenges were highlighted by BofA. First, Sigma is presently permitted to use only two out of five waste piles, a restriction that could constrain mining throughput. Second, the company has undertaken mining without a formal mining contractor in place, which the broker said introduces execution risk.
Given these residual issues, BofA concluded that the stock s current valuation - after a meaningful retracement from recent highs - better reflects those challenges, supporting the move to a Neutral rating.
Additional company disclosures and developments provide context for the restart. Sigma has resumed mining activity at Mine 1 in Vale do Jequitinhonha, Brazil, following a restructuring of its mining operations completed in the fourth quarter of 2025. The company said it has bolstered its technical leadership and grown its fleet of off-road mining equipment to align with increased production capacity at its Greentech Industrial Plant.
Sigma also reported a commercial sale of 100,000 tonnes of high-purity lithium fines priced at $140 per tonne for material containing 1% lithium oxide. That sale was referenced to market prices from the Shanghai Metals Market index and exceeded prior sale prices.
At the same time, Sigma continues to contend with regulatory and safety obstacles. Brazilian labor authorities ordered the closure of three waste piles at the company's Grota do Cirilo mine in Minas Gerais, citing safety concerns that the Labor Ministry described as posing a "grave and imminent" risk to workers and the local community. Sigma's appeal to lift the closure order was dismissed, adding to the operational challenges the company faces.
Investors weighing Sigma Lithium s outlook must balance the positive signal from the mine restart against the short-term liquidity pressure and the operational limitations tied to permitted waste-pile usage and the absence of a mining contractor.