Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Trading 8.4% Higher - Should You Buy?

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) rose 8.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $16.70 and last traded at $16.57. Approximately 533,020 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 1,089,044 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VTLE has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup lowered shares of Vital Energy to a "reduce" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank downgraded shares of Vital Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vital Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $30.36.

Vital Energy Stock Down 1.7%

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $15.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $640.14 million, a PE ratio of -3.48 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.26. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 8.89% and a positive return on equity of 9.48%. The company had revenue of $512.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $528.76 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. Vital Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vital Energy

In related news, CEO M. Jason Pigott purchased 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $18.09 per share, with a total value of $99,495.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 251,533 shares in the company, valued at $4,550,231.97. The trade was a 2.24% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.75 per share, for a total transaction of $88,750.00. Following 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock valued at $448,742. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vital Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VTLE. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 124.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 338,675 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,110,000 after acquiring an additional 187,503 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $750,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 192,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,965,000 after acquiring an additional 9,320 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 130,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,046,000 after acquiring an additional 3,571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,292,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.54% of the company's stock.

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.