Baytex Energy Corp $BTE Stake Cut by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Baytex Energy Corp (NYSE:BTE) (TSE:BTE) by 6.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,757,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 125,000 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Baytex Energy were worth $7,939,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Capula Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Baytex Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $57,000. Commerce Bank bought a new position in shares of Baytex Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Baytex Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Baytex Energy by 31.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 21,120 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 5,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new position in Baytex Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $95,000. Institutional investors own 46.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BTE shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Baytex Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. TD Securities restated a “hold” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research raised Baytex Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Baytex Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Baytex Energy in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Baytex Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Baytex Energy stock opened at $5.30 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of -7.92 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.57. Baytex Energy Corp has a one year low of $2.18 and a one year high of $5.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.79 and a current ratio of 2.82.

Baytex Energy (NYSE:BTE) (TSE:BTE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.09. Baytex Energy had a negative net margin of 26.43% and a negative return on equity of 7.77%. The business had revenue of $449.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $218.10 million. Research analysts expect that Baytex Energy Corp will post 0.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Baytex Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a dividend of C$0.02 per share. This represents a $0.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Baytex Energy’s payout ratio is -8.96%.

Baytex Energy Company Profile

Baytex Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTE) is a Canadian oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company’s operations are focused on the development and production of crude oil, condensate, natural gas liquids and natural gas.

Baytex’s asset base is concentrated in Western Canada, including the Clearwater and Viking oil plays in Alberta and Saskatchewan, and in the Eagle Ford shale region of South Texas. The company sells its production into North American markets through established pipeline, processing and transportation infrastructure.

Baytex traces its history to the Canadian energy sector in the 1990s and has expanded through a combination of exploration, development and acquisitions.