Royal Bank of Canada Downgrades Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) to Sector Perform

Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) (TSE:ERF) from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $22.00 price objective on the oil and natural gas company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $21.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on ERF. CIBC reduced their price target on Enerplus from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. TD Securities reiterated a tender rating and issued a $18.85 price target (down previously from $21.00) on shares of Enerplus in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com began coverage on Enerplus in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Finally, National Bankshares dropped their price objective on Enerplus from $25.00 to $21.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $21.69.

Enerplus Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE ERF opened at $19.34 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $19.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.84. Enerplus has a 12 month low of $13.46 and a 12 month high of $20.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a PE ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) (TSE:ERF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The oil and natural gas company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. Enerplus had a return on equity of 40.36% and a net margin of 27.67%. The firm had revenue of $437.10 million for the quarter. On average, analysts expect that Enerplus will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Enerplus Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is an increase from Enerplus’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. Enerplus’s dividend payout ratio is 12.38%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Enerplus during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Enerplus during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Enerplus by 356.5% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,958 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,310 shares during the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in shares of Enerplus in the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. raised its stake in shares of Enerplus by 311.9% in the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 4,667 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 3,534 shares during the last quarter. 58.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Enerplus Company Profile

Enerplus Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, explores and develops crude oil and natural gas in the United States. Its oil and natural gas properties are located primarily in North Dakota, Colorado, and Pennsylvania. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.