EQT Corporation Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.17 (NYSE:EQT)

EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of 0.165 per share by the oil and gas producer on Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 5th.

EQT has increased its dividend by an average of 0.8%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 3 consecutive years. EQT has a dividend payout ratio of 13.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect EQT to earn $3.73 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.66 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.7%.

EQT Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of EQT stock opened at $49.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. EQT has a 12-month low of $47.94 and a 12-month high of $68.24. The company has a market cap of $30.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.35 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.64.

EQT (NYSE:EQT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.32. EQT had a net margin of 31.94% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.18 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that EQT will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on EQT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of EQT from $72.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Capital One Financial increased their target price on EQT from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating on shares of EQT in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on EQT from $76.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut EQT from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.12.

About EQT

EQT Corporation (NYSE: EQT) is a U.S.-based energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of natural gas. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the company concentrates its upstream operations in the Appalachian Basin, producing from major shale formations including the Marcellus and Utica. EQT’s primary product is natural gas, with production activities supported by associated liquids and conventional gas assets where applicable.

In addition to drilling and well development, EQT operates and coordinates the infrastructure and commercial activities necessary to bring gas to market.