Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) Cut to "Hold" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Viper Energy from “strong buy” to “hold.” Wall Street’s overall view remains more positive: MarketBeat reports a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $56.41.
• Viper Energy beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $0.72 versus $0.69 expected and revenue of $661 million versus $625.18 million expected. Revenue rose 58.1% year over year.
• Shares opened at $40.19, below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $43.43 and $44.42, respectively.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on VNOM. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Viper Energy from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Johnson Rice assumed coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Monday, August 3rd. They issued an "accumulate" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Viper Energy in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Viper Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 31st. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.41.

Viper Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VNOM opened at $40.19 on Monday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $43.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.42. Viper Energy has a twelve month low of $35.10 and a twelve month high of $51.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.34 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 5.92, a current ratio of 5.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $625.18 million. Viper Energy had a return on equity of 4.24% and a net margin of 12.08%. Viper Energy's revenue was up 58.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Viper Energy will post 2.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viper Energy

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in Viper Energy by 49.8% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 15,562 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $621,000 after buying an additional 5,171 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its position in Viper Energy by 22.1% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 46,479 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,854,000 after acquiring an additional 8,402 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 8.8% during the third quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,355,126 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $54,056,000 after acquiring an additional 109,502 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Viper Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $2,301,000. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 64.6% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 234,335 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $9,348,000 after acquiring an additional 91,939 shares in the last quarter. 87.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viper Energy Company Profile

Viper Energy, Inc. owns and acquires mineral and royalty interests in oil and natural gas properties. Rather than serving primarily as a drilling operator, the company earns revenue from production on acreage where other companies conduct exploration and development. Its interests are concentrated in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, including the Midland and Delaware sub-basins. Viper's business is tied to activity by the operators that develop the underlying properties.

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