Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) Shares Bought by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,214,295 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 118,367 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 5.80% of Vital Energy worth $68,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VTLE. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Vital Energy during the 4th quarter worth $788,000. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the 4th quarter worth $750,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the 4th quarter worth $1,292,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 304,345 shares of the company's stock worth $9,410,000 after purchasing an additional 38,537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Vital Energy by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 504,885 shares of the company's stock worth $15,611,000 after buying an additional 103,583 shares during the period. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vital Energy Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE VTLE traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $15.23. 1,093,023 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,089,545. Vital Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $12.30 and a 52-week high of $49.20. The firm has a market cap of $590.28 million, a PE ratio of -3.21 and a beta of 1.53. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.26. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 8.89% and a positive return on equity of 9.48%. The business had revenue of $512.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $528.76 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vital Energy news, CEO M. Jason Pigott purchased 5,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $18.09 per share, with a total value of $99,495.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 251,533 shares in the company, valued at $4,550,231.97. This trade represents a 2.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $207,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 97,556 shares in the company, valued at $2,022,335.88. This trade represents a 9.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,647 shares of company stock worth $448,742 over the last three months. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VTLE shares. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $23.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Siebert Williams Shank cut Vital Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $27.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $30.36.

About Vital Energy

Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023.