Weiss Ratings Reaffirms “Sell (D)” Rating for Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE)

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE)‘s stock had its “sell (d)” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Vital Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Vital Energy from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vital Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Vital Energy from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “mixed” rating on shares of Vital Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $26.44.

Vital Energy Price Performance

VTLE stock opened at $16.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $16.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $651.71 million, a PE ratio of -0.85 and a beta of 1.45. Vital Energy has a one year low of $12.30 and a one year high of $36.72.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $429.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.25 million. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 38.52% and a positive return on equity of 11.86%. The firm’s revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Vital Energy will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Vital Energy by 29.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Vital Energy by 30.5% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 4,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in Vital Energy by 63.5% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 99,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,600,000 after purchasing an additional 38,613 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Vital Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $172,000. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP grew its holdings in Vital Energy by 126.4% during the second quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 288,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,636,000 after purchasing an additional 160,878 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.54% of the company’s stock.

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.