Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Downgraded by Raymond James Financial to Underperform

Raymond James Financial cut shares of Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) from an outperform rating to an underperform rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Citigroup lowered Vital Energy to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Williams Trading set a $27.00 target price on shares of Vital Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Vital Energy from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Vital Energy from $23.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.09.

Vital Energy Price Performance

NYSE:VTLE opened at $17.57 on Tuesday. Vital Energy has a 52-week low of $12.30 and a 52-week high of $47.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $681.31 million, a P/E ratio of -5.20 and a beta of 1.59. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $16.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.67.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $512.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $528.76 million. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 6.37% and a positive return on equity of 10.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vital Energy will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO M. Jason Pigott purchased 5,500 shares of Vital Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $18.09 per share, for a total transaction of $99,495.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 251,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,550,231.97. This represents a 2.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.75 per share, with a total value of $88,750.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 43,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $764,528. This represents a 13.13% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vital Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its position in Vital Energy by 48.3% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 3,284,584 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,289 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 2.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,162,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,895,000 after buying an additional 46,300 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,395,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,157,000 after buying an additional 9,676 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Vital Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,392,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 35.8% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 675,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,330,000 after acquiring an additional 177,851 shares during the last quarter. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vital Energy

Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023.