Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Matador Resources has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 16 brokerages, with 11 buys, four holds and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $65.93.
• The company 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.
• Matador declared a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, equivalent to a 2.5% annualized yield; insiders also purchased 23,144 shares worth approximately $1.21 million during the quarter.

Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $65.9286.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup cut their target price on Matador Resources from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Matador Resources to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Matador Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 25th. Roth Capital upgraded shares of Matador Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Matador Resources from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

Shares of Matador Resources stock opened at $59.33 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.35. Matador Resources has a one year low of $37.14 and a one year high of $66.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.18 and a beta of 0.79.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up 32.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Matador Resources will post 7.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matador Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matador Resources

In related news, CFO Christopher Calvert acquired 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $56.64 per share, with a total value of $141,600.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 44,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,492,160. This trade represents a 6.02% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Joseph Foran acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $52.16 per share, with a total value of $521,600.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 25,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,336,182.72. The trade was a 64.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 23,144 shares of company stock worth $1,211,793. Insiders own 5.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matador Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Matador Resources in the 2nd quarter worth about $605,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Matador Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,682,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Matador Resources during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $573,936,000. Morningstar Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Matador Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,630,000. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services boosted its stake in shares of Matador Resources by 333.7% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 51,356 shares of the energy company's stock worth $2,180,000 after buying an additional 39,516 shares during the last quarter. 91.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Matador Resources

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.