Viper Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Viper Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $54.20.

A number of analysts have recently commented on VNOM shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Viper Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Viper Energy from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, TD Securities set a $54.00 target price on shares of Viper Energy in a report on Tuesday, September 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viper Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in Viper Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viper Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Viper Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Viper Energy by 48.7% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,068 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Viper Energy by 503.3% in the 3rd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 906 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.72% of the company’s stock.

Viper Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VNOM opened at $37.93 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $13.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 0.48. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $37.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.95. Viper Energy has a fifty-two week low of $34.71 and a fifty-two week high of $52.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.02. Viper Energy had a net margin of 20.62% and a return on equity of 3.09%. The company had revenue of $418.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $389.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. Viper Energy’s revenue was up 98.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Viper Energy will post 2.02 EPS for the current year.

Viper Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 13th were issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 13th. Viper Energy’s payout ratio is presently 54.55%.

About Viper Energy

Viper Energy Partners LP is a publicly traded master limited partnership that owns and intends to acquire mineral and royalty interests in oil and natural gas properties. As a pass-through entity, Viper Energy Partners does not engage in drilling or production operations directly; instead, it generates revenues by holding overriding royalty interests, mineral fee interests and royalty fee interests. These interests entitle the partnership to receive a percentage of the proceeds from hydrocarbons produced and sold by third-party operators.

The partnership’s assets are concentrated in the Permian Basin, with a primary focus on the Delaware Basin region of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico.