Vermilion Energy (TSE:VET) Stock Price Down 14.4% on Analyst Downgrade

Vermilion Energy Inc. (TSE:VET) (NYSE:VET) shares fell 14.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday after CIBC lowered their price target on the stock from C$17.00 to C$14.00. The stock traded as low as C$7.83 and last traded at C$7.95. 867,089 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 14% from the average session volume of 762,131 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$9.29.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on VET. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Vermilion Energy from C$17.00 to C$16.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 30th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Vermilion Energy from C$16.00 to C$14.00 in a report on Thursday, March 6th. National Bankshares increased their price objective on shares of Vermilion Energy from C$18.00 to C$19.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Desjardins cut Vermilion Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from C$19.00 to C$14.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, ATB Capital dropped their price target on Vermilion Energy from C$20.00 to C$17.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$16.75.

Vermilion Energy Trading Down 13.8 %

The stock has a market cap of C$1.24 billion, a PE ratio of -1.51, a PEG ratio of -0.02 and a beta of 2.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.61, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of C$11.52 and a 200 day moving average price of C$12.98.

Vermilion Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.49%. This is a positive change from Vermilion Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Vermilion Energy’s payout ratio is presently -9.03%.

About Vermilion Energy

Vermilion Energy Inc is an international oil and gas producing company. It engages in full-cycle exploration and production programs that focus on the acquisition, exploration, development, and optimization of producing properties in North America, Europe, and Australia. The majority of Vermilion’s revenue has derived from the production and sale of petroleum and natural gas.