Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $30.09.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial lowered Vital Energy from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Piper Sandler lowered 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th.

Vital Energy Price Performance

Vital Energy stock opened at $17.02 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $16.86 and its 200 day moving average is $22.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $659.87 million, a P/E ratio of -5.04 and a beta of 1.60. Vital Energy has a one year low of $12.30 and a one year high of $47.80.

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

Insider Transactions at Vital Energy

In related news, CEO M. Jason Pigott acquired 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.09 per share, with a total value of $99,495.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 251,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,550,231.97. This trade represents a 2.24% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vital Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Vital Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $788,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 304,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,410,000 after purchasing an additional 38,537 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 504,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,611,000 after purchasing an additional 103,583 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 239,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,393,000 after purchasing an additional 33,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 3,678.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 30,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 29,831 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.54% of the company’s stock.

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.