Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Stock Price Up 6.2% – Should You Buy?

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE)’s share price was up 6.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $14.45 and last traded at $14.33. Approximately 241,613 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 1,024,304 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on VTLE. Williams Trading set a $27.00 price target on Vital Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Siebert Williams Shank lowered shares of Vital Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $27.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Vital Energy from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Raymond James decreased their target price on Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup lowered Vital Energy to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.08.

Vital Energy Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $578.10 million, a P/E ratio of -3.19 and a beta of 2.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $22.44 and a 200-day moving average of $27.99. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.27. Vital Energy had a positive return on equity of 9.48% and a negative net margin of 8.89%. The firm had revenue of $534.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $550.90 million. As a group, analysts predict that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mark David Denny sold 5,974 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $123,841.02. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $880,900.62. This represents a 12.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Kathryn Anne Hill sold 5,673 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $117,601.29. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 46,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,141.49. This trade represents a 10.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock worth $448,742. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 3,678.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 30,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $650,000 after buying an additional 29,831 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $257,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Vital Energy by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 26,724 shares of the company’s stock worth $826,000 after buying an additional 1,740 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in Vital Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,392,000. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 154.5% in the fourth quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd now owns 23,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 14,516 shares in the last quarter. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.