Baytex Energy (TSE:BTE) Stock Price Down 14.2% on Analyst Downgrade

Baytex Energy Corp. (TSE:BTE) (NYSE:BTE)’s share price fell 14.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday after CIBC lowered their price target on the stock from C$5.00 to C$4.25. The stock traded as low as C$2.16 and last traded at C$2.18. 6,173,633 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 30% from the average session volume of 4,755,449 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$2.54.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James lowered their price objective on Baytex Energy from C$5.00 to C$4.00 in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.00 to C$4.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Baytex Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Atb Cap Markets cut shares of Baytex Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Baytex Energy from C$5.50 to C$5.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$5.33.

Baytex Energy Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 57.38. The stock has a market cap of C$1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.14, a PEG ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 2.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is C$3.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$3.62.

Baytex Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a dividend of $0.0225 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. Baytex Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -20.48%.

About Baytex Energy

Baytex Energy Corp., an energy company, engages in the acquisition, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and in the Eagle Ford, the United States. The company offers light oil and condensate, heavy oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas.