Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) shares gapped down prior to trading on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $74.00. The stock had previously closed at $51.64, but opened at $50.54. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Matador Resources shares last traded at $50.09, with a volume of 150,607 shares trading hands.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on MTDR. UBS Group started coverage on Matador Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Matador Resources from $77.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Matador Resources from $70.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $65.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $90.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matador Resources

In related news, CEO Joseph Wm Foran bought 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $39.63 per share, for a total transaction of $99,075.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 60,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,407,760.28. This represents a 4.29% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Glenn W. Stetson acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $41.53 per share, for a total transaction of $41,530.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 93,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,869,765.40. This trade represents a 1.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 14,850 shares of company stock worth $601,103 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 5.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matador Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Matador Resources by 262.0% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,517,308 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $85,364,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098,108 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 2,002.9% during the first quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,051,472 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $53,720,000 after purchasing an additional 1,001,472 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Matador Resources by 7.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,511,643 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $690,310,000 after purchasing an additional 956,090 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Matador Resources during the first quarter valued at about $35,715,000. Finally, Webs Creek Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Matador Resources in the fourth quarter worth about $37,894,000. 91.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Matador Resources Stock Down 0.4%

The stock has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.58 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock's 50-day moving average is $43.55 and its 200-day moving average is $50.61.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The energy company reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.25. Matador Resources had a net margin of 24.97% and a return on equity of 18.45%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $980.87 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.71 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Matador Resources Company will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matador Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.3125 per share. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.78%.

Matador Resources announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the energy company to reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.