Short Interest in Mach Natural Resources LP (NYSE:MNR) Grows By 41.6%

Key Points

• Short interest in Mach Natural Resources (NYSE:MNR) rose 41.6% in April to 2,478,169 shares, equal to about 12.1% of shares outstanding and a short-interest ratio of 1.4 days.
• Contrasting insider moves: Tom L. Ward purchased 153,256 shares (~$2.0M) on April 13, while major shareholder General Partner S.A R.L. Ikav sold 5,557,679 shares (a 56.6% reduction) on April 8; insiders still own 87.8% of the company.
• Dividend and fundamentals: the firm boosted its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (annualized $2.12) for a 15.8% yield despite a payout ratio of 189%, and recently reported an EPS beat ($0.43 vs. $0.26) with an average analyst target of $18.50.

Mach Natural Resources LP (NYSE:MNR - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,478,169 shares, a growth of 41.6% from the March 31st total of 1,750,324 shares. Approximately 12.1% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,747,028 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Tom L. Ward acquired 153,256 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $13.05 per share, for a total transaction of $1,999,990.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 13,295,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $173,500,258.95. The trade was a 1.17% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder General Partner S.A R.L. Ikav sold 5,557,679 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total transaction of $71,193,867.99. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,259,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,559,199.10. This trade represents a 56.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have bought a total of 163,541 shares of company stock valued at $2,142,861 in the last quarter. Insiders own 87.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mach Natural Resources

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MNR. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Mach Natural Resources by 384.7% in the 1st quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 4,992 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 3,962 shares during the last quarter. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Mach Natural Resources in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mach Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at $178,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Mach Natural Resources by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 187,723 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,072,000 after acquiring an additional 47,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Mach Natural Resources by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 64,749 shares of the company's stock worth $715,000 after purchasing an additional 5,734 shares during the last quarter. 78.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MNR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Mach Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Mach Natural Resources from $22.00 to $18.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Mach Natural Resources in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a "hold" rating and a $14.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mach Natural Resources from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Mach Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $18.50.

Mach Natural Resources Stock Up 0.9%

MNR stock traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.43. The stock had a trading volume of 221,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 589,505. The business has a 50-day moving average of $13.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.98 and a beta of -0.35. Mach Natural Resources has a 52-week low of $10.46 and a 52-week high of $15.60.

Mach Natural Resources (NYSE:MNR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $387.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $357.31 million. Mach Natural Resources had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 16.91%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mach Natural Resources will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mach Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 26th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.8%. This is a boost from Mach Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 26th. Mach Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 189.29%.

About Mach Natural Resources

Mach Natural Resources LP, an independent upstream oil and gas company, focuses on the acquisition, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids reserves in the Anadarko Basin region of Western Oklahoma, Southern Kansas, and the panhandle of Texas. It also owns a portfolio of midstream assets, as well as owns plants and water infrastructure. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

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