Baytex Energy (TSE:BTE) Hits New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Baytex hit a new 52-week high — shares traded as high as C$7.14 (last C$7.09) on heavy volume, rising about 2.7% intraday.
• Analysts have grown more positive, with five Buys and three Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” and an average target of C$6.18, and several firms raising price targets (Canaccord to C$7.00).
• Fundamentals remain mixed: Baytex reported negative EPS (C$(1.11) last quarter), negative margins and ROE, and a high debt-to-equity (4.94), though insiders have recently bought shares and the company pays a small annualized dividend (~1.3%).

Baytex Energy Corp. (TSE:BTE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BTE's share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as C$7.14 and last traded at C$7.09, with a volume of 3363858 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$6.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. TD Securities lifted their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.00 to C$5.50 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Baytex Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from C$5.25 to C$7.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.00 to C$6.50 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. National Bank Financial lifted their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.00 to C$5.75 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.25 to C$5.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Baytex Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of C$6.18.

Baytex Energy Trading Up 2.7%

The company has a market cap of C$5.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.15, a PEG ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 0.42. The stock's 50 day moving average is C$5.76 and its 200-day moving average is C$4.79. The company has a current ratio of 3.61, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.94.

Baytex Energy (TSE:BTE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BTE last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported C($1.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Baytex Energy had a negative return on equity of 16.25% and a negative net margin of 40.77%. Research analysts anticipate that Baytex Energy Corp. will post 0.3703367 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Baytex Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st were paid a $0.0225 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Baytex Energy's payout ratio is presently -11.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Baytex Energy news, insider Chadwick Kalmakoff bought 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$5.73 per share, with a total value of C$85,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 382,331 shares in the company, valued at C$2,190,756.63. This represents a 4.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Nicole Marie Frechette bought 8,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$5.84 per share, with a total value of C$49,640.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 73,026 shares in the company, valued at C$426,471.84. The trade was a 13.17% increase in their position. Insiders acquired a total of 49,800 shares of company stock worth $293,188 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company's stock.

Baytex Energy Company Profile

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.

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