Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Shares Up 5.5% - Still a Buy?

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 5.5% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $17.18 and last traded at $17.66. 109,861 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 1,118,130 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Vital Energy from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $23.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.09.

Vital Energy Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $720.35 million, a PE ratio of -5.50 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $16.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.78.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $512.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $528.76 million. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 6.37% and a positive return on equity of 10.34%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Energy

In other news, CEO M. Jason Pigott purchased 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $18.09 per share, for a total transaction of $99,495.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 251,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,550,231.97. This trade represents a 2.24% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Vital Energy by 58.7% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 361.1% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 38,861 shares of the company's stock worth $825,000 after purchasing an additional 30,433 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $502,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 200,055 shares of the company's stock worth $4,245,000 after purchasing an additional 7,134 shares during the period. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,701,000. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vital Energy Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.