AQR Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Matador Resources Company $MTDR

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has increased its stake in Matador Resources by 8.0%, acquiring 73,510 shares to own a total of 997,235 shares, valued at $50.41 million.
• The company recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.53 for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations and showing a 8.2% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Matador Resources announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3125 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.6% and a dividend payout ratio of 18.30%.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR - Free Report) by 8.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 997,235 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 73,510 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.80% of Matador Resources worth $50,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MTDR. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Matador Resources during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Matador Resources in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Matador Resources by 70.8% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 859 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Matador Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Matador Resources by 9,090.9% in the first quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 1,011 shares of the energy company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MTDR shares. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Matador Resources to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Matador Resources from $80.00 to $74.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 16th. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on Matador Resources from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Matador Resources from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on Matador Resources from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.53.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

NYSE MTDR traded down $0.87 on Friday, hitting $47.72. 1,126,581 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,255,470. The business's 50 day moving average price is $49.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.94. Matador Resources Company has a 52-week low of $35.19 and a 52-week high of $64.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.99 and a beta of 1.49.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The energy company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.24. Matador Resources had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 22.57%.The firm had revenue of $895.31 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $892.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Matador Resources Company will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Matador Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.3125 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Joseph Wm Foran purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.17 per share, for a total transaction of $245,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,606 shares in the company, valued at $324,817.02. This trade represents a 311.33% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, production, and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through two segments, Exploration and Production; and Midstream. The company primarily holds interests in the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays in the Delaware Basin in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas.