Epsilon Energy (NASDAQ:EPSN) Lowered to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Epsilon Energy has been downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting a more cautious outlook on the stock.
• The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.14, with revenues of $16.16 million surpassing the estimated $11.71 million.
• Institutional investors currently own 60.33% of Epsilon Energy's stock, indicating significant institutional interest in the company.

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Epsilon Energy (NASDAQ:EPSN - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday.

Separately, Roth Capital set a $8.40 price target on Epsilon Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd.

Epsilon Energy Trading Up 2.4%

NASDAQ EPSN traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, reaching $6.39. 81,921 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 130,174. Epsilon Energy has a fifty-two week low of $4.95 and a fifty-two week high of $8.50. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $7.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.71 million, a PE ratio of 30.43 and a beta of 0.17.

Epsilon Energy (NASDAQ:EPSN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $16.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.71 million. Epsilon Energy had a return on equity of 5.97% and a net margin of 11.18%. Equities analysts forecast that Epsilon Energy will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Epsilon Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.91%. Epsilon Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 119.05%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Solas Capital Management, Llc sold 74,427 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.48, for a total transaction of $556,713.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,694,040 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,631,419.20. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in Epsilon Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Epsilon Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $77,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Epsilon Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $107,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in Epsilon Energy by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 16,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 3,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Epsilon Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $134,000. 60.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Epsilon Energy

Epsilon Energy Ltd., a North American onshore independent natural gas and oil company, engages in the acquisition, development, gathering, and production of natural oil and gas reserves in the United States. The company operates through Upstream and Gathering System segments. It has natural gas production in the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania; and oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas production in the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico, and Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma.