Baytex Energy (TSE:BTE) Sets New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Baytex Energy Corp. (TSE:BTE) (NYSE:BTE) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Scotiabank raised their price target on the stock from C$5.25 to C$5.50. Scotiabank currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Baytex Energy traded as high as C$4.85 and last traded at C$4.82, with a volume of 3129358 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$4.66.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Capital One Financial raised Baytex Energy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised Baytex Energy from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from C$3.00 to C$6.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Baytex Energy from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. National Bankshares lowered their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$4.75 to C$4.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of Baytex Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$4.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Chad Lundberg acquired 11,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of C$4.36 per share, for a total transaction of C$50,140.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 532,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$2,323,012.36. The trade was a 2.21% increase in their position. Also, Director Mark Bly bought 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of C$4.50 per share, for a total transaction of C$90,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 575,638 shares in the company, valued at C$2,590,371. This trade represents a 3.60% increase in their ownership of the stock. Insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Baytex Energy Stock Up 3.0%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is C$4.43 and its 200-day moving average price is C$3.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 57.38. The company has a market cap of C$3.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 0.92.

Baytex Energy (TSE:BTE) (NYSE:BTE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported C$0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$746.42 million for the quarter. Baytex Energy had a negative return on equity of 8.96% and a negative net margin of 10.45%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Baytex Energy Corp. will post 0.3703367 EPS for the current year.

Baytex Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a $0.0225 dividend. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Baytex Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.14%.

About Baytex Energy

Baytex Energy Corp is an oil and gas company. Geographically, the group operates in Canada and the United States. The company derives a majority of revenue from Canada. Its Canada segment includes the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas in Western Canada.