Fact based stock research
Enerplus (TSX:ERF)

CA2927661025

How to read the ranks

For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Enerplus stock research in summary

enerplus.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 62 (better than 62% compared with investment alternatives), Enerplus (Oil & Gas Production, Canada) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Enerplus are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 42 (worse than 58% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 47) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 81), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 62, is a buy recommendation based on Enerplus's financial characteristics. As the company Enerplus's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 42) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 47), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. In this case, good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 81) are a positive sign, because it may allow the company to weather challenging times until the hoped-for cash flows materialize. This may be true for high-tech or biotechnology companies with enough cash to sustain prolonged business development. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and unattractive today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value, as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts lie all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that account for a small fraction of a safe portfolio. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	42
Growth Rank	47
Safety Rank	81
Combined Rank	62

Country	Canada
Industry	Oil & Gas Production
Index	Oil & Gas, Water Efficiency, TSX Composite
Size class	Large

This stock has achievements: Top 10 Stock.

18-Apr-2024. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

Multiple opinions. One number.

Analysts rarely agree on a stock’s future. So, who do you believe? Obermatt translates those collective views into a single Sentiment Rank. That plus the financial ranks give you the ultimate 360° View. Sign up to access them.

Why popular stocks have low ratings

It’s easier said than done. When your stock drops, it’s easy to want to sell it and find a better performer. Think twice, or even three times, before trading. Those fees (especially the hidden ones) can eat up your gains.

Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: Enerplus

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	24	39	48	42
GROWTH
GROWTH	48	59	43	47
SAFETY
SAFETY	33	13	72	81
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	69	65	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	35	65	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 18-Apr-2024. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 31-Dec-2023. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Enerplus is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	24	39	48	42
GROWTH
GROWTH	48	59	43	47
SAFETY
SAFETY	33	13	72	81
COMBINED
COMBINED	12	17	56	62

Last update of combined financial performance: 18-Apr-2024. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Enerplus the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 42 (worse than 58% compared with alternatives), Enerplus shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Enerplus. Only Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) indicates good stock value with a rank of 88, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 88% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Enerplus's profit levels. But Price-to-Sales is 39 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than for 61% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Enerplus's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 7 and for dividend yield, which is lower than for 64% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 42, is a hold recommendation based on Enerplus's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Can we rely on only one good value indicator? Only if we know the company well. In this case, a high Price-to-Profit Rank, while Price-to-Sales and Price-to-Book are both below the market typical levels, means that the company can charge higher prices for its products and needs less capital to produce them. If this is sustainable, then Enerplus is a good investment because profits count most in enterprise valuations. The low dividend yield indicates that the company is confident it can do something with the generated cash that is more valuable than paying the profits out to the shareholders in the form of dividends. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is essential in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	44	68	57	39
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	6	64	84	88
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	2	4	15	7
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	55	51	39	36
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	24	39	48	42

Last update of Value Rank: 18-Apr-2024. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Enerplus; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 47 (better than 47% compared with alternatives), Enerplus shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Enerplus. Sales Growth has a below market rank of 42, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 58% of its competitors. The same is valid for Capital Growth, with a rank of 19, and Profit Growth, with a rank of 45. Currently, professionals expect the company to grow its profits less than 55% of its competitors). Only shareholders are optimistic. Stock Returns are above average at a rank of 91, which means that the stock returns have recently been above 91% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 47, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. That picture may be the result for a company that has reached the bottom. All went south for Enerplus, and it still looks bad, but some investors already see light at the end of the tunnel, rewarding the stock with recent above-market stock returns. It could also mean that investors are correcting an overreaction to negative news. If that were the case, the positive stock returns are not yet a sign of recovery. Investors should look closely at the Value and Sentiment indicators before they make a stock purchasing decision, because growth is unlikely to be the driving argument behind this investment. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is low here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	74	24	58	42
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	15	30	50	45
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	78	55	19
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	88	87	33	91
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	48	59	43	47

Last update of Growth Rank: 18-Apr-2024. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Enerplus.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 81 (better than 81% compared with alternatives) for 2024, the company Enerplus has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of Enerplus is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with two out of three indicators above average for Enerplus. Leverage is at a rank of 86, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 86% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 87, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 87% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the safer side when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is lower at a rank of 39, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 61% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 81 (better than 81% compared with alternatives), Enerplus has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. The refinancing issues could be a short-term problem, especially if the company has reputation issues. Banks and investors don't like to refinance debt if there are clouds on the horizon. For this reason, investors should look at the refinancing environment for Enerplus. Does it look safe that debt that is coming due can be covered with new debt? If that is the case, then the financing situation of the company is on the safer side. If not, it may be better to wait until refinancing has been completed and the Refinancing rank is good again. Investors may have a short-term debt challenge with Enerplus and should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	47	43	76	86
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	12	33	42	39
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	36	13	89	87
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	33	13	72	81

Last update of Safety Rank: 18-Apr-2024. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Enerplus and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	64	64	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	83	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	14	73	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	44	38	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	69	65	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 18-Apr-2024. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Enerplus.
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