Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on VNOM. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $72.00 target price on shares of Viper Energy in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Viper Energy from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. TD Securities lifted their target price on Viper Energy from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Viper Energy from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Viper Energy from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.00.

Viper Energy Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:VNOM traded down $0.12 during trading on Friday, hitting $40.72. 1,488,433 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,370,955. The stock has a market cap of $11.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.72, a P/E/G ratio of 19.47 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 8.70, a quick ratio of 8.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Viper Energy has a fifty-two week low of $34.71 and a fifty-two week high of $56.76. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $40.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.75.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $245.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $233.99 million. Viper Energy had a net margin of 43.43% and a return on equity of 5.41%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Viper Energy will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Viper Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Viper Energy's payout ratio is presently 31.58%.

Institutional Trading of Viper Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Viper Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,701,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Viper Energy by 6,591.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 91,068 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,112,000 after buying an additional 89,707 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC increased its stake in Viper Energy by 196.5% during the 4th quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 13,326 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $654,000 after acquiring an additional 8,831 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Viper Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $358,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Viper Energy by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 268,297 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $13,165,000 after acquiring an additional 16,172 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.72% of the company's stock.

About Viper Energy

Viper Energy, Inc engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.