BKV (NYSE:BKV) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• BKV shares jumped 8.3%, opening at $23.30 versus the prior close of $22.05 and later trading near $24.01.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $33.56, despite some target-price reductions and rating downgrades.
• BKV exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.46 EPS versus the $0.25 consensus and revenue of $465.54 million versus $355.25 million; however, insiders sold 35,626 shares worth about $901,589 over the past quarter.

BKV Corporation (NYSE:BKV - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $22.05, but opened at $23.30. BKV shares last traded at $24.0130, with a volume of 767,801 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BKV shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of BKV from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of BKV in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded BKV from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 19th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on BKV from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut BKV from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BKV currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.56.

BKV Trading Up 8.3%

The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.73 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $24.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

BKV (NYSE:BKV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $465.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.25 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that BKV Corporation will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Lindsay B. Larrick sold 10,000 shares of the company's 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 directly owned 83,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,195,478. This represents a 10.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Javier Hinojosa sold 7,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.66, for a total value of $168,318.48. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 76,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,741,375.68. The trade was a 8.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 have sold a total of 35,626 shares of company stock worth $901,589 over the last quarter. 2.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in BKV in the second quarter worth $74,241,000. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC lifted its stake in BKV by 24.7% in the first quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 2,103,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,984,000 after buying an additional 416,281 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BKV during the second quarter valued at $32,689,000. Value Aligned Research Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BKV by 110.5% during the second quarter. Value Aligned Research Advisors LLC now owns 679,899 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,602,000 after acquiring an additional 356,848 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of BKV during the second quarter worth about $16,177,000.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.