Viper Energy’s (VNOM) “Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Raymond James

Raymond James reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $60.00 target price on the oil and gas producer’s stock, up from their prior target price of $54.00.

VNOM has been the subject of a number of other reports. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Viper Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $72.00 price target on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Viper Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.85.

Viper Energy Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:VNOM opened at $41.33 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74 and a beta of 1.00. Viper Energy has a 1 year low of $34.71 and a 1 year high of $56.76. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $40.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.64. The company has a current ratio of 7.24, a quick ratio of 7.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $245.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $233.99 million. Viper Energy had a net margin of 24.65% and a return on equity of 6.72%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Viper Energy will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Viper Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Viper Energy’s payout ratio is presently 31.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viper Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Viper Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Viper Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Viper Energy by 321.7% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 679 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Viper Energy by 129.0% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 735 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Viper Energy by 43.9% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 701 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.72% of the company’s stock.

Viper Energy Company Profile

Viper Energy, Inc engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.