Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) Plans $0.40 Quarterly Dividend

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 6th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of 0.399 per share by the oil and gas producer on Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th.

Suncor Energy has raised its dividend payment by an average of 28.1% annually over the last three years. Suncor Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 43.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Suncor Energy to earn $3.25 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.59 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 48.9%.

Suncor Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SU traded down $0.26 during trading on Thursday, reaching $38.44. 4,469,595 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,443,565. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average of $37.67 and a 200-day moving average of $38.54. Suncor Energy has a 12 month low of $31.25 and a 12 month high of $41.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.12.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 15.67% and a net margin of 15.19%. On average, equities analysts expect that Suncor Energy will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SU. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Suncor Energy from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Suncor Energy in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Desjardins upgraded shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Suncor Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.00.

Suncor Energy Company Profile

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products.