Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Reaches New 1-Year Low After Analyst Downgrade

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday after Bank of America lowered their price target on the stock from $33.00 to $27.00. Bank of America currently has an underperform rating on the stock. Vital Energy traded as low as $19.76 and last traded at $20.16, with a volume of 71908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.10.

VTLE has been the subject of several other reports. Williams Trading set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Vital Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $32.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup downgraded Vital Energy to a "reduce" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wolfe Research raised Vital Energy from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank lowered shares of Vital Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $62.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $38.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark David Denny sold 5,974 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $123,841.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at $880,900.62. This represents a 12.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $207,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 97,556 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,022,335.88. This represents a 9.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,647 shares of company stock worth $448,742 in the last 90 days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vital Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Vital Energy by 805.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 915 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Vital Energy by 276.9% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Vital Energy by 247.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,553 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vital Energy Trading Down 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $527.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.91 and a beta of 2.82. The company's fifty day moving average is $26.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.10.

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

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.