W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• W&T Offshore shares gapped up before Thursday’s open, rising from a prior close of $3.72 to an opening price of $3.89 and last trading near $3.92.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock to hold, Weiss Ratings reiterated a sell, while William Blair has an outperform rating and Roth Capital set a $4.25 price target. Overall, MarketBeat says the consensus rating is Hold with a $4.25 target.
• The company recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.01 per share, equal to a 1.0% annualized yield, while institutional investors continue to hold a significant stake, owning about 42.88% of the stock.

W&T Offshore, Inc. (NYSE:WTI - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $3.72, but opened at $3.89. W&T Offshore shares last traded at $3.9160, with a volume of 571,723 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WTI shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of W&T Offshore from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. William Blair began coverage on W&T Offshore in a research report on Friday, April 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of W&T Offshore in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $4.25 price target on W&T Offshore in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $4.25.

W&T Offshore Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $578.61 million, a P/E ratio of -4.10 and a beta of 0.24. The business's 50-day moving average is $3.70 and its 200 day moving average is $3.11.

W&T Offshore Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. W&T Offshore's payout ratio is presently -4.21%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W&T Offshore

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of W&T Offshore by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 312,081 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $509,000 after acquiring an additional 4,241 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of W&T Offshore by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 87,530 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 6,195 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of W&T Offshore by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 36,610 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 6,524 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of W&T Offshore by 42.7% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 21,957 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 6,569 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in W&T Offshore by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 283,774 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 8,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.88% of the company's stock.

W&T Offshore Company Profile

W&T Offshore, Inc is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company focused primarily on offshore operations in the Gulf of Mexico. The company acquires, develops and produces crude oil and natural gas reserves, operating a portfolio of producing properties that encompasses both shallow-water and deepwater assets. W&T Offshore leverages its technical expertise and asset management capabilities to optimize field development and production efficiency across its portfolio.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, W&T Offshore has built a track record of disciplined growth through strategic acquisitions and targeted exploration activities.

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