Baytex Energy (NYSE:BTE) Trading Up 6.2% Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Baytex Energy Corp (NYSE:BTE) (TSE:BTE)’s stock price shot up 6.2% on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $4.66 and last traded at $4.5250. Approximately 6,177,200 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 20,472,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.26.

The oil and gas producer reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.09. Baytex Energy had a negative return on equity of 10.85% and a negative net margin of 24.25%.The firm had revenue of $449.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $218.10 million.

Baytex Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.0225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Baytex Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -8.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on BTE. Zacks Research downgraded Baytex Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a research note on Monday, May 11th. TD Securities restated a “hold” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Baytex Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,449,680 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $95,270,000 after buying an additional 374,972 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Baytex Energy by 816.3% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 22,003,118 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $98,381,000 after acquiring an additional 19,601,808 shares during the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Baytex Energy by 43.9% during the first quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 20,071,614 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $89,695,000 after purchasing an additional 6,123,098 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of Baytex Energy by 7.4% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 10,710,876 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $19,172,000 after purchasing an additional 738,337 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Baytex Energy by 176.3% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 10,287,145 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $33,321,000 after purchasing an additional 6,564,105 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 46.15% of the company’s stock.

Baytex Energy Stock Up 6.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.43 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 2.12. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.18.

About Baytex Energy

Baytex Energy Corp. is an oil & gas exploration and production company. The firm engages in the acquisition, development and production of crude oil and natural gas in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and in the Eagle Ford in the United States. The company was founded on June 3, 1993 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.