Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $4.02 Million Investment in Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 130,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,022,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.34% of Vital Energy at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. US Bancorp DE grew its position in Vital Energy by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,971 shares of the company's stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,662 shares of the company's stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 276.9% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 21,641 shares of the company's stock valued at $582,000 after purchasing an additional 951 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 127,271 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,424,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.54% of the company's stock.

Vital Energy Price Performance

NYSE VTLE opened at $15.80 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $20.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $27.39. Vital Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $12.30 and a 12-month high of $55.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $611.49 million, a PE ratio of -3.33 and a beta of 2.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.27. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 8.89% and a positive return on equity of 9.48%. The firm had revenue of $534.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $550.90 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on VTLE shares. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Siebert Williams Shank lowered Vital Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $62.00 to $27.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on Vital Energy from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vital Energy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.36.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $207,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 97,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,022,335.88. This trade represents a 9.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.75 per share, with a total value of $88,750.00. Following the transaction, 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 quarter, insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock valued at $448,742. Insiders own 1.20% 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.

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