Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) Trading 6.2% Higher - Here's What Happened

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE - Get Free Report) traded up 6.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $14.45 and last traded at $14.33. 241,613 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 1,024,304 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup downgraded Vital Energy to a "reduce" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Vital Energy from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Williams Trading set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Vital Energy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Vital Energy from $34.00 to $23.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.08.

Vital Energy Stock Down 3.3 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $570.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.10 and a beta of 2.82. The business's 50-day moving average is $22.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.90. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.30 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 company had revenue of $534.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $550.90 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.75 per share, for a total transaction of $88,750.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 43,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at $764,528. This represents a 13.13 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $207,300.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock worth $448,742. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Vital Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VTLE. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its position in Vital Energy by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 2,214,295 shares of the company's stock worth $68,466,000 after buying an additional 118,367 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Vital Energy by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,116,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,442,000 after purchasing an additional 62,771 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,395,883 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,157,000 after acquiring an additional 9,676 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in Vital Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $39,392,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 637,869 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,727,000 after buying an additional 4,852 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.54% 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.