Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Trading Down 6.3% After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Matador Resources shares fell 6.3% to about $47.59 after UBS Group cut its price target from $56 to $54 while maintaining a neutral rating.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 11 Buy ratings and five Holds; the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $63.92.
• Company insiders purchased 11,907 shares worth approximately $635,712 over the past three months, while Matador announced a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, yielding about 3.2% annually.

Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) traded down 6.3% during trading on Monday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $56.00 to $54.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Matador Resources traded as low as $47.85 and last traded at $47.5940. 1,733,343 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 6% from the average session volume of 1,838,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.81.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on MTDR. Roth Capital upgraded shares of Matador Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Matador Resources from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Matador Resources from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Matador Resources from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Matador Resources from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Christopher P. Calvert acquired 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $53.24 per share, for a total transaction of $79,860.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 41,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,209,460. The trade was a 3.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Joseph Wm Foran bought 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $53.07 per share, for a total transaction of $106,140.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 11,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at $609,190.53. This represents a 21.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 11,907 shares of company stock worth $635,712. 5.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Matador Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Matador Resources by 1,104.8% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,012 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 1,845 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Matador Resources by 361.3% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 881 shares of the energy company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Matador Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $255,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Matador Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,126,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Matador Resources by 767.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,261 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 2,885 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.98% of the company's stock.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $53.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.28. The company has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $941.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $871.57 million. Matador Resources had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 33.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.99 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Matador Resources Company will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Matador Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.56%.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company is an independent energy firm primarily engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. The company focuses on upstream operations, utilizing horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques to unlock hydrocarbons from key reservoirs. Its asset base includes both operated and non‐operated positions, with a particular emphasis on the Permian Basin, one of the most prolific oil-producing regions in North America.

Matador's core operations are concentrated in the Delaware Basin segment of the Permian Basin, where it holds substantial acreage in both Reeves and Culberson counties in West Texas and Eddy and Lea counties in New Mexico.

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