Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on VNOM. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Viper Energy from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Scotiabank began coverage on Viper Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. Johnson Rice assumed coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “accumulate” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. TD increased their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $57.00 price target on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.41.

Viper Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ VNOM opened at $40.19 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.42. The company has a quick ratio of 5.92, a current ratio of 5.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Viper Energy has a 12-month low of $35.10 and a 12-month high of $51.13. The firm has a market cap of $14.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.34 and a beta of 0.49.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $625.18 million. Viper Energy had a return on equity of 4.24% and a net margin of 12.08%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 58.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Viper Energy will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Viper Energy by 13.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,223,344 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $57,485,000 after purchasing an additional 145,221 shares during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of Viper Energy by 8.8% during the third quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,355,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $54,056,000 after buying an additional 109,502 shares during the period. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Viper Energy by 36.9% during the first quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 989,318 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $46,488,000 after buying an additional 266,703 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viper Energy during the first quarter valued at about $37,464,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Viper Energy by 24.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 795,347 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $37,373,000 after buying an additional 154,032 shares in the last quarter. 87.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viper Energy Company Profile

Viper Energy, Inc. owns and acquires mineral and royalty interests in oil and natural gas properties. Rather than serving primarily as a drilling operator, the company earns revenue from production on acreage where other companies conduct exploration and development. Its interests are concentrated in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, including the Midland and Delaware sub-basins. Viper’s business is tied to activity by the operators that develop the underlying properties.