TD Newcrest is maintaining its Hold rating on shares of Jaguar Mining (NYSE: JAG) while raising its price target from $5 to $8.

Following an potential unsolicited offer from China s Shandong Gold Group, management at JAG has began exploring strategic alternatives to see whats best for their shareholders. The company noted that they have been receiving offers over the past few weeks, but did not report who they may have been from.

The proposed offer from China s Shandong Gold Group is for $785 million, which the firm calls a "step price fore assets of this quality." TD Newcrest highlights that the company's existing operating mines are relatively small and have been money losers. They also do not see any substantial upside coming from these mines over time.

An analyst at the firm comments, "Given the detail in the news reports, including the acquiring company s name and offer price, we believe there is credibility to the bid speculation. It is possible that as a producer with several small gold mines in China, Shandong believes it can improve upon the performance of these mines, and pick up a mid-sized albeit low-grade deposit in Gurupi."

TD Newcrest estimates earnings of $0.11 and $0.53 per share for FY11 and FY12.

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Jaguar Mining click here. For more ratings news on Jaguar Mining click here.

Shares of Jaguar Mining closed at $7.80 yesterday, with a 52 week range of $4.03-$8.18.