Piper Sandler Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Stock Price

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) had its price objective lowered by equities research analysts at Piper Sandler from $35.00 to $27.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 3.67% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on VTLE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Vital Energy from $66.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Vital Energy from $48.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Vital Energy from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.00.

Vital Energy Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of VTLE stock opened at $28.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 3.19. Vital Energy has a 52-week low of $25.85 and a 52-week high of $58.30.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.15. Vital Energy had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 25.09%. The company had revenue of $459.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $461.58 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.16 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Vital Energy will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Mark David Denny sold 5,145 shares of Vital Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.22, for a total transaction of $155,481.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $796,538.76. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Kathryn Anne Hill sold 2,023 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.22, for a total transaction of $61,135.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 29,091 shares in the company, valued at $879,130.02. This trade represents a 6.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,168 shares of company stock valued at $502,017. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vital Energy by 400.9% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Vital Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Vital Energy by 2,590.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 1,943 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Vital Energy by 234.2% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,326 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 100.0% during the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.54% of the company’s stock.

Vital Energy Company Profile

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.