StockNews.com Downgrades Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) to Hold

In a report released on Monday, the rating went from buy to hold.

ERF was the subject of several other research reports. Barclays upgraded Enerplus in a research note on Thursday, April 20, from equal weight to overweight. In a research report published on Tuesday, January 17, Scotiabank reduced their target price for shares of Enerplus. It went from C$26.00 down to C$25.00. Four analysts gave the stock a buy rating, while two research analysts assigned the stock a hold. On Monday, the business opened at $14.07. The company's 50-day moving average is $14.73, and its 200-day moving average is $16.39. The company's market capitalization is $3.03 billion. It has a P/E ratio of 3.26, and a beta value of 2.18. Enerplus's 1-year low is $11.00, and its 1-year high is $19.23. The company's debt-to equity ratio is 0.11, its current ratio is 0.76 and its quick ratio 0.76.

The last time the TSE:ERF released its results was on Thursday, 23rd February. The oil and gas company posted $0.78 per share in earnings for the third quarter, which was above analysts' expectations of $0.78. During the quarter, revenue was $548.70 millions. Enerplus' return on equity was 72.62%, and its net margin was 44.08%. Sell-side analysts expect Enerplus to post an average of 2.36 earnings per shares for the current fiscal.

Enerplus Cuts Dividend

A quarterly dividend was also announced by the firm, and will be paid out on June 15th. The $0.11 dividend will be paid to stockholders who were in the books on May 31st. On an annualized base, this is a $0.44 payout and a dividend rate of 3.13%. The ex-dividend day is Tuesday, 30th May. Enerplus has a dividend payout ratio of 5.09%.

Enerplus Institutional Trading

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently changed their positions in ERF. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Enerplus shares by 60.5% during the third quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC owns now 5,108,144 of the oil company's shares worth $72,332,000, after purchasing an additional 1,925.908 shares. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Enerplus shares by 74.2% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owns now 2,986,433 of the oil company's shares worth $37.906,000, after purchasing an additional 1,271,801 during the period. Balyasny Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Enerplus shares by 2,503.6% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management LLC owns 1,144.173 shares in the oil and gas company, worth $16,212,000, after purchasing an additional 1,100.227 shares. Riposte capital LLC acquired a stake in Enerplus shares in the fourth quarter, worth approximately $14,077,000. River & Mercantile Asset Management LLP increased its stake in Enerplus shares by 1,547.4% during the third quarter. River & Mercantile Asset Management LLP owns now 1,070.833 shares worth $8.580,000, after purchasing an additional 1,005.833 during the period. Hedge funds and institutional investors own 53.01%.

Enerplus Company profile

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Enerplus Corp. is engaged in the production and exploration of crude oil. It operates in the Willston Basin Marcellus Shale and Canadian Waterfloods. The company has interests in North Dakota as well as Colorado, Pennsylvania and the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. The company was established in 1986 in Calgary, Canada.

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