Brokerages Set Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) Price Target at $52.00

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU - Get Free Report) TSE: SU has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eight ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $52.00.

Separately, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Suncor Energy from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday.

Suncor Energy Stock Performance

SU stock traded up $0.43 during trading on Thursday, hitting $36.91. 2,371,032 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,318,097. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Suncor Energy has a 1 year low of $27.59 and a 1 year high of $36.97. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $33.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.24. The company has a market cap of $47.54 billion, a PE ratio of 7.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.12.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU - Get Free Report) TSE: SU last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $10.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 16.08% and a net margin of 16.33%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Suncor Energy will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a $0.406 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This is a boost from Suncor Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Suncor Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Suncor Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 163.1% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 16,402,041 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $480,908,000 after purchasing an additional 10,168,941 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 79.3% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 16,823,815 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $548,183,000 after acquiring an additional 7,438,559 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD purchased a new position in shares of Suncor Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $199,877,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 32,070,496 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,032,453,000 after acquiring an additional 4,612,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Suncor Energy by 35.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,466,624 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $566,123,000 after purchasing an additional 4,271,009 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.37% of the company's stock.

About Suncor Energy

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products.