Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) Receives Average Recommendation of "Reduce" from Analysts

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Reduce" from the twelve brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $30.36.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their price target on Vital Energy from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Vital Energy from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Mizuho dropped their price target on Vital Energy from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price target on Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th.

Insider Transactions at Vital Energy

In other news, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell purchased 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.75 per share, for a total transaction of $88,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 43,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $764,528. The trade was a 13.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO M. Jason Pigott purchased 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.09 per share, for a total transaction of $99,495.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 251,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,550,231.97. This represents a 2.24% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 21,647 shares of company stock valued at $448,742. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 805.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 915 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 814 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 276.9% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 247.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,553 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.54% of the company's stock.

Vital Energy Price Performance

Shares of VTLE stock traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $15.23. The stock had a trading volume of 1,093,023 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,089,545. Vital Energy has a 12-month low of $12.30 and a 12-month high of $49.20. The company has a market cap of $590.28 million, a P/E ratio of -3.21 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $512.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $528.76 million. Vital Energy had a positive return on equity of 9.48% and a negative net margin of 8.89%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vital Energy will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vital Energy

Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023.