Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) Short Interest Down 16.9% in December

Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,103,953 shares, a drop of 16.9% from the December 15th total of 9,753,206 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,661,624 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days. Approximately 5.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 5.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,661,624 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days.

Liberty Energy Stock Performance

LBRT opened at $20.13 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Liberty Energy has a 1-year low of $9.50 and a 1-year high of $22.94. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $18.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.75.

Liberty Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is presently 32.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Liberty Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of Liberty Energy in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Liberty Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Liberty Energy by 213.7% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 2,457 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Liberty Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on LBRT. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Liberty Energy from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Liberty Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Liberty Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Liberty Energy from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Liberty Energy in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.27.

About Liberty Energy

Liberty Energy Inc provides hydraulic services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas exploration, and production companies in North America. The company offers hydraulic fracturing services, including complementary services, such as wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (CNG) delivery, data analytics, related goods comprising sand mine operations, and technologies; and well site fueling and logistics. As of as of December 31, 2023, the company owned and operated a fleet of approximately 40 active hydraulic fracturing; and two sand mines in the Permian Basin.