Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) Cut to "Sector Perform" at Royal Bank of Canada

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $19.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $24.00. Royal Bank of Canada's target price suggests a potential upside of 20.42% from the stock's previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on LBRT. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Liberty Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $19.00 price target for the company. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Liberty Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Liberty Energy from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Atb Cap Markets raised shares of Liberty Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Liberty Energy from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $21.90.

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Liberty Energy Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of LBRT traded down $0.44 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $15.78. The company had a trading volume of 1,933,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,643,304. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.44 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $17.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.49. Liberty Energy has a 1 year low of $13.86 and a 1 year high of $24.75.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.16 by ($0.06). Liberty Energy had a net margin of 7.32% and a return on equity of 14.28%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Liberty Energy will post 0.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Liberty Energy

In other Liberty Energy news, CFO Michael Stock sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.51, for a total transaction of $97,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 700,207 shares in the company, valued at $13,661,038.57. This trade represents a 0.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 40,000 shares of company stock worth $808,350 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LBRT. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Liberty Energy by 237.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,991 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,401 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Liberty Energy by 257.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,583 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 604.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,460 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 2,111 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in Liberty Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Liberty Energy by 176.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,423 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 2,184 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.22% of the company's stock.

About Liberty Energy

Liberty Energy Inc provides hydraulic services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas exploration, and production companies in North America. The company offers hydraulic fracturing services, including complementary services, such as wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (CNG) delivery, data analytics, related goods comprising sand mine operations, and technologies; and well site fueling and logistics.