BKV (NYSE:BKV) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded BKV from “sell” to “strong sell,” contrasting with the broader analyst consensus of “Buy” and an average price target of $33.67.
• BKV shares opened at $22.88, up 2.6%, but remained below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with $0.46 in earnings per share versus a $0.25 consensus estimate and revenue of $465.54 million.
• Company insiders sold 35,626 shares worth approximately $901,589 over the past three months, while several institutional investors initiated or increased positions in BKV.

BKV (NYSE:BKV - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on BKV. Weiss Ratings upgraded BKV from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on BKV from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Barclays decreased their price target on BKV from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Evercore raised BKV to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $29.00 price objective on BKV in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BKV currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.67.

BKV Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE BKV opened at $22.88 on Friday. BKV has a 12 month low of $20.08 and a 12 month high of $32.81. The company has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.35 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $24.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.87.

BKV (NYSE:BKV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.21. BKV had a net margin of 17.73% and a return on equity of 6.67%. The firm had revenue of $465.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $355.25 million. As a group, analysts forecast that BKV will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO David Tameron sold 4,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.56, for a total transaction of $114,765.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 58,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,554,397.44. This represents a 6.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Lindsay B. Larrick sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.16, for a total transaction of $261,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 83,925 shares in the company, valued at $2,195,478. This trade represents a 10.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,626 shares of company stock valued at $901,589. Insiders own 2.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of BKV in the 3rd quarter worth $1,227,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in BKV by 23.1% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 4,160 shares of the company's stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 782 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in BKV by 87.7% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 301,461 shares of the company's stock worth $8,248,000 after buying an additional 140,835 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new position in shares of BKV in the second quarter worth about $289,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of BKV in the second quarter worth about $677,000.

About BKV

BKV Corporation is an energy company focused on natural gas production and related energy-transition solutions. The company explores for, develops and produces natural gas and natural gas liquids, with operations primarily centered in major U.S. shale basins.

BKV's activities include upstream oil and gas development, natural gas marketing and midstream services. The company also develops carbon capture, utilization and storage projects intended to reduce emissions associated with natural gas production and use, as well as renewable natural gas initiatives.

Based in Denver, Colorado, BKV serves U.S.

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