Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) (TSE:ERF) in a report issued on Sunday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the oil and natural gas company’s stock.

ERF has been the subject of several other research reports. National Bankshares dropped their target price on shares of Enerplus from $25.00 to $21.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. TD Securities reissued a tender rating and issued a $18.85 target price (down previously from $21.00) on shares of Enerplus in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, CIBC decreased their target price on Enerplus from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $21.69.

Enerplus Price Performance

Shares of ERF stock opened at $20.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.55 and a beta of 1.99. Enerplus has a 12 month low of $13.46 and a 12 month high of $20.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $18.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.62.

Enerplus (NYSE:ERF) (TSE:ERF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The oil and natural gas company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $437.10 million for the quarter. Enerplus had a net margin of 27.67% and a return on equity of 40.36%. Research analysts expect that Enerplus will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Enerplus Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. This is a boost from Enerplus’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. Enerplus’s payout ratio is presently 12.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Enerplus

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Enerplus during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bessemer Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Enerplus during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Enerplus during the third quarter worth $38,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in Enerplus in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Enerplus by 80.3% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 2,559 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,140 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.42% of the company’s stock.

About Enerplus

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.