Wall Street Zen Downgrades BKV (NYSE:BKV) to Strong Sell

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded BKV from “sell” to “strong sell,” contrasting with the broader analyst consensus of “Moderate Buy” from eight Buy ratings and two Holds, with an average price target of $34.25.
• BKV shares opened at $26.04, down 1%, while the company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations: EPS was $0.46 versus a $0.25 consensus estimate, and revenue reached $465.54 million.
• Company insiders sold 28,198 shares worth approximately $733,271 over the past three months, while several institutional investors increased their holdings.

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

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on BKV. Barclays raised their target price on shares of BKV from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of BKV in a report on Friday, July 10th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on BKV from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Citigroup decreased their target price on BKV from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded BKV from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BKV currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $34.25.

BKV Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:BKV opened at $26.04 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50 and a beta of 1.06. BKV has a twelve month low of $20.08 and a twelve month high of $32.81. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $25.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.26.

BKV (NYSE:BKV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.21. BKV had a net margin of 17.73% and a return on equity of 6.67%. The company had revenue of $465.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.25 million. Analysts anticipate that BKV will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO David Tameron sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.63, for a total transaction of $38,445.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,024 shares in the company, valued at $1,461,525.12. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Javier Hinojosa sold 12,377 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.73, for a total value of $318,460.21. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,168,421.48. The trade was a 12.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 28,198 shares of company stock worth $733,271 in the last three months. 2.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC raised its stake in shares of BKV by 35.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 461,657 shares of the company's stock worth $10,678,000 after acquiring an additional 121,082 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in BKV by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 556,539 shares of the company's stock worth $15,114,000 after purchasing an additional 160,171 shares during the last quarter. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of BKV during the fourth quarter worth $52,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its position in shares of BKV by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 5,701 shares of the company's stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of BKV by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 544,932 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,541,000 after purchasing an additional 62,485 shares during the last quarter.

About BKV

BKV Corporation engages in the acquisition, operation, and development of natural gas and NGL properties. It is also involved in the gathering, processing, and transportation of natural gas. The company was founded in 2015 and is based in Denver, Colorado with additional offices in Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania and Fort Worth, Texas. BKV Corporation, LLC operates as a subsidiary of Banpu North America Corporation.

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