Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 152,417 Shares of Viper Energy Inc. $VNOM

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners Inc. reduced its stake in Viper Energy Inc. by 6.0%, selling 152,417 shares to own approximately 1.12% of the company, valued at $107.9 million.
• Several institutional investors, including the Swiss National Bank and Principal Financial Group, increased their holdings in Viper Energy, indicating growing investor confidence.
• Wall Street analysts have mostly given Viper Energy a "Buy" rating, with an average target price of $56.36, suggesting positive growth expectations for the company.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its holdings in Viper Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,390,792 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 152,417 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned approximately 1.12% of Viper Energy worth $107,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Viper Energy by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 247,177 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $11,160,000 after purchasing an additional 44,700 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in Viper Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,701,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Viper Energy by 27.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 302,575 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $13,661,000 after purchasing an additional 65,375 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in Viper Energy by 21.3% in the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 59,901 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $2,705,000 after purchasing an additional 10,529 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Viper Energy by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,552,974 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $70,117,000 after purchasing an additional 271,337 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on VNOM shares. William Blair started coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Monday. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. TD Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Monday, August 18th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $46.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Viper Energy from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $56.36.

Viper Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VNOM opened at $39.45 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $38.13 and a 200-day moving average of $41.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a PEG ratio of 17.37 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 6.15, a quick ratio of 6.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Viper Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.71 and a 12 month high of $56.76.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $297.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $285.35 million. Viper Energy had a net margin of 37.84% and a return on equity of 3.92%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 37.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.62 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Viper Energy Inc. will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Viper Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. Viper Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.15%.

About Viper Energy

Viper Energy, Inc engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VNOM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Viper Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.