First Eagle Investment Management LLC Acquires 33,700 Shares of Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) by 16.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 239,101 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 33,700 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned about 0.63% of Vital Energy worth $7,393,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VTLE. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 127,271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,424,000 after buying an additional 1,089 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 6.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 576,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,507,000 after buying an additional 35,133 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Vital Energy by 5.3% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 183,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,939,000 after buying an additional 9,246 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the third quarter valued at about $335,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Energy during the third quarter valued at about $693,000. 86.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on VTLE shares. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Siebert Williams Shank lowered shares of Vital Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Williams Trading set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Vital Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.46.

Insider Transactions at Vital Energy

In related news, COO Kathryn Anne Hill sold 5,673 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $117,601.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 46,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,141.49. This represents a 10.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $207,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 97,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,022,335.88. The trade was a 9.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,647 shares of company stock valued at $448,742 in the last ninety days. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vital Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VTLE opened at $21.19 on Friday. Vital Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $19.85 and a twelve month high of $58.30. The company’s 50 day moving average is $30.70 and its 200 day moving average is $30.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $807.59 million, a PE ratio of -4.46 and a beta of 3.07.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $534.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $550.90 million. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 8.89% and a positive return on equity of 9.48%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vital Energy, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

About Vital Energy

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.