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

Matador Resources (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.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on MTDR. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Matador Resources from $70.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group started coverage on Matador Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $90.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Raymond James dropped their target price 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. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Monday, May 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Matador Resources presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $69.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matador Resources

In other Matador Resources news, EVP Glenn W. Stetson bought 1,000 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $41.53 per share, with a total value of $41,530.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 93,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,869,765.40. This represents a 1.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Joseph Wm Foran bought 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.63 per share, with a total value of $99,075.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,407,760.28. This represents a 4.29% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 14,850 shares of company stock valued at $601,103 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 5.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matador Resources

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MTDR. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Matador Resources in the 1st quarter worth about $5,881,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Matador Resources by 361.3% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 881 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. boosted its holdings in Matador Resources by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. now owns 6,552 shares of the energy company's stock worth $335,000 after buying an additional 953 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of Matador Resources by 35.6% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,858 shares of the energy company's stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Matador Resources in the first quarter worth $383,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.98% of the company's stock.

Matador Resources Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.08 and a beta of 1.46. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $42.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The energy company reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $980.87 million. Matador Resources had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 25.26%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 28.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.71 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Matador Resources will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Matador Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a dividend of $0.3125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio is 16.78%.

Matador Resources announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 23rd that allows the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to repurchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often 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.

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