Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

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

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on VNOM. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Viper Energy from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. KeyCorp cut their target price on Viper Energy from $62.00 to $56.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Viper Energy from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.00.

Viper Energy Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:VNOM traded up $0.43 on Friday, reaching $38.68. 951,449 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,374,979. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $40.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.13. Viper Energy has a 52 week low of $34.71 and a 52 week high of $56.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 18.25 and a beta of 0.97. 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 (NASDAQ:VNOM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.09. Viper Energy had a return on equity of 5.41% and a net margin of 43.43%. The company had revenue of $245.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $233.99 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Viper Energy will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Viper Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Viper Energy's payout ratio is presently 31.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viper Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Viper Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Viper Energy by 321.7% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 679 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Viper Energy by 129.0% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 735 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in Viper Energy in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new stake in Viper Energy in the first quarter worth about $41,000. 87.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.