Investors Buy High Volume of Vital Energy Call Options (NYSE:VTLE)

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 7,208 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 341% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,634 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Vital Energy from $23.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $29.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Siebert Williams Shank downgraded shares of Vital Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Citigroup cut Vital Energy to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.36.

Vital Energy Stock Up 7.5%

Vital Energy stock opened at $18.24 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $705.92 million, a P/E ratio of -3.84 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $17.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.34. Vital Energy has a twelve month low of $12.30 and a twelve month high of $51.71.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.26. Vital Energy had a positive return on equity of 9.48% and a negative net margin of 8.89%. The firm had revenue of $512.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $528.76 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Vital Energy will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vital Energy

In other Vital Energy news, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $207,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 97,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,022,335.88. This trade represents a 9.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Richard D. Campbell bought 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.75 per share, with a total value of $88,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $764,528. This trade represents a 13.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock worth $448,742. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Energy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vital Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $788,000. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in Vital Energy in the fourth quarter worth $750,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Vital Energy in the fourth quarter worth $1,292,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vital Energy by 25.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 504,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,611,000 after purchasing an additional 103,583 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 239,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,393,000 after purchasing an additional 33,700 shares during the last quarter. 86.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vital Energy Company Profile

Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023.