Weiss Asset Management LP Acquires New Stake in Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 11,856 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $586,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 8.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,734,819 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $282,196,000 after purchasing an additional 356,506 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 2.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,752,102 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $136,009,000 after purchasing an additional 72,077 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 10.5% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,250,036 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $134,102,000 after purchasing an additional 214,334 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 4.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,434,926 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $70,914,000 after purchasing an additional 57,254 shares during the period. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 4.3% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,287,587 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $63,633,000 after purchasing an additional 52,498 shares during the period. 91.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Matador Resources news, Director Robert Gaines Baty bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $50.58 per share, for a total transaction of $25,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 67,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,420,067.86. The trade was a 0.74 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Glenn W. Stetson bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $51.33 per share, for a total transaction of $51,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,935 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,411,043.55. The trade was a 1.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 1,805 shares of company stock valued at $92,151. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Matador Resources Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:MTDR traded up $1.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $56.42. The stock had a trading volume of 1,204,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,509,126. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.46. The company has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a PE ratio of 7.32 and a beta of 3.26. Matador Resources has a twelve month low of $47.15 and a twelve month high of $71.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The energy company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.11. Matador Resources had a net margin of 27.45% and a return on equity of 20.01%. The company had revenue of $770.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $836.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.86 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Matador Resources will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. This is a boost from Matador Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Matador Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MTDR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Matador Resources from $77.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $85.00 to $74.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $89.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.08.

Matador Resources Company Profile

Matador Resources Company, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, production, and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through two segments, Exploration and Production; and Midstream. The company primarily holds interests in the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays in the Delaware Basin in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas.