Stifel Nicolaus Begins Coverage on Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR)

Key Points

• Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage of Matador Resources with a “buy” rating and a $66 price target, implying approximately 7.5% upside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $65.93. Shares rose 1.2% to $61.41 during Thursday trading.
• Matador exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.61 in EPS versus the $2.08 consensus and $1.17 billion in revenue, up 32.5% year over year. Company insiders also purchased more than $1.2 million of stock over the past three months.

Equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) in a report released on Thursday. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $66.00 price target on the energy company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price suggests a potential upside of 7.47% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on MTDR. Roth Capital raised shares of Matador Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Matador Resources from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Matador Resources from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. KeyCorp decreased their target price on Matador Resources from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.93.

Matador Resources Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:MTDR traded up $0.73 during trading on Thursday, reaching $61.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 78,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,884,003. Matador Resources has a 12 month low of $37.14 and a 12 month high of $66.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $53.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.60 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.79.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. Matador Resources had a return on equity of 13.18% and a net margin of 19.85%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 32.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Matador Resources will post 7.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matador Resources

In other Matador Resources news, CEO Joseph Foran acquired 555 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $54.49 per share, with a total value of $30,241.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at $260,026.28. This trade represents a 13.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Christopher P. Calvert bought 2,500 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $56.64 per share, for a total transaction of $141,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,492,160. This represents a 6.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought a total of 23,144 shares of company stock worth $1,211,793 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matador Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MTDR. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 16.1% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,270 shares of the energy company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd increased its position in shares of Matador Resources by 36.7% in the 1st quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 748 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Burford Brothers Inc. increased its position in shares of Matador Resources by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 26,798 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,693,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its stake in Matador Resources by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 11,821 shares of the energy company's stock worth $531,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Matador Resources by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 9,138 shares of the energy company's stock worth $388,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. 91.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Matador Resources Company Profile

Matador Resources Company is an independent energy firm primarily engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. The company focuses on upstream operations, utilizing horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques to unlock hydrocarbons from key reservoirs. Its asset base includes both operated and non‐operated positions, with a particular emphasis on the Permian Basin, one of the most prolific oil-producing regions in North America.

Matador's core operations are concentrated in the Delaware Basin segment of the Permian Basin, where it holds substantial acreage in both Reeves and Culberson counties in West Texas and Eddy and Lea counties in New Mexico.

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