Baytex Energy Corp. (TSE:BTE) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Baytex Energy Corp. (TSE:BTE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BTE has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$5.84.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BTE. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on Baytex Energy from C$6.50 to C$6.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Baytex Energy from C$6.00 to C$5.50 in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James upgraded Baytex Energy to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Baytex Energy from C$5.50 to C$5.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, CIBC decreased their target price on shares of Baytex Energy from C$6.00 to C$5.00 in a report on Friday.

Baytex Energy Price Performance

TSE BTE traded up C$0.01 on Friday, reaching C$3.82. 2,627,555 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,501,017. Baytex Energy has a 12 month low of C$3.15 and a 12 month high of C$5.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 62.33. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is C$3.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$4.28. The company has a market cap of C$3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 2.61.

Baytex Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.023 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. Baytex Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -13.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Senior Officer Nicole Marie Frechette bought 8,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of C$3.67 per share, for a total transaction of C$30,094.00. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.