KeyCorp Has Negative Forecast for Vital Energy Q1 Earnings

Key Points

• KeyCorp has reduced its Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimate for Vital Energy from $1.60 to $1.40, reflecting a negative forecast for the company.
• The latest earnings report showed Vital Energy exceeded expectations with $2.02 EPS, but revenue declined by 9.8% compared to the previous year.
• Analyst sentiment is bearish, with multiple firms downgrading their ratings on Vital Energy's stock, resulting in an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $26.44.

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Free Report) - Research analysts at KeyCorp cut their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Vital Energy in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, October 14th. KeyCorp analyst T. Rezvan now anticipates that the company will earn $1.40 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.60. The consensus estimate for Vital Energy's current full-year earnings is $8.49 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Vital Energy's Q2 2026 earnings at $1.56 EPS and Q1 2027 earnings at $1.13 EPS.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.04. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 38.52% and a positive return on equity of 11.86%. The business had revenue of $429.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $481.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on VTLE. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Vital Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vital Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Vital Energy from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Vital Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "mixed" rating on shares of Vital Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $26.44.

Vital Energy Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:VTLE opened at $15.77 on Thursday. Vital Energy has a 12 month low of $12.30 and a 12 month high of $36.72. The stock has a market cap of $610.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.80 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $16.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in Vital Energy by 48.3% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 3,284,584 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,289 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Vital Energy by 2.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,162,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,895,000 after acquiring an additional 46,300 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vital Energy by 23.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 832,618 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,397,000 after purchasing an additional 157,325 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vital Energy by 2.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 673,154 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,833,000 after purchasing an additional 18,602 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vital Energy by 16.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 588,673 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,492,000 after purchasing an additional 83,788 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.54% of the company's stock.

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.

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