State Street Corp Acquires 1,585,649 Shares of Vaalco Energy Inc $EGY

Key Points

• State Street increased its Vaalco Energy stake by 44.2% in the second quarter, acquiring 1.59 million shares and bringing its holdings to 5.17 million shares, or 4.92% of the company.
• Other institutional investors, including BlackRock and Dimensional Fund Advisors, also expanded their positions; institutions and hedge funds collectively own 50.32% of Vaalco’s stock.
• Vaalco shares opened at $5.83, while analysts maintain a cautious outlook with an average “Reduce” rating and a $7.30 price target. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.0625 per share, representing a 4.3% annualized yield.

State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vaalco Energy Inc (NYSE:EGY - Free Report) by 44.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,173,995 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,585,649 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 4.92% of Vaalco Energy worth $26,284,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EGY. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vaalco Energy by 6.7% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 8,936,762 shares of the energy company's stock worth $45,399,000 after buying an additional 558,168 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Vaalco Energy by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,028,909 shares of the energy company's stock worth $25,545,000 after acquiring an additional 389,058 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS boosted its holdings in Vaalco Energy by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 3,378,835 shares of the energy company's stock worth $21,422,000 after acquiring an additional 150,175 shares during the period. Tieton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Vaalco Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $9,324,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Vaalco Energy by 125.9% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,214,918 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $7,703,000 after acquiring an additional 677,176 shares in the last quarter. 50.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vaalco Energy Trading Down 1.9%

Vaalco Energy stock opened at $5.83 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $612.73 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.50 and a beta of 0.14. Vaalco Energy Inc has a 1 year low of $3.36 and a 1 year high of $6.72. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $5.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.44.

Vaalco Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Vaalco Energy's payout ratio is currently -23.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vaalco Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Vaalco Energy in a report on Friday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vaalco Energy has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $7.30.

About Vaalco Energy

VAALCO Energy, Inc is an independent energy company engaged in the acquisition, exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the company focuses primarily on international upstream oil and gas activities.

VAALCO's operations have included offshore and onshore assets in Africa, with interests in the Etame Marin field offshore Gabon and producing properties in Egypt. The company has also held exploration and development interests in Equatorial Guinea and Canada.

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