VAALCO Energy Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:EGY)

VAALCO Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EGY) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 6,034 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 924% compared to the typical volume of 589 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VAALCO Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of VAALCO Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $226,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in VAALCO Energy in the fourth quarter worth $141,000. GTS Securities LLC boosted its holdings in VAALCO Energy by 49.1% in the fourth quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 19,268 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 6,343 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in VAALCO Energy in the fourth quarter worth $497,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in VAALCO Energy by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 29,339 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 9,654 shares in the last quarter. 50.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded VAALCO Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th.

VAALCO Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EGY opened at $4.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $428.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 1.16. VAALCO Energy has a 12 month low of $3.57 and a 12 month high of $7.51. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $4.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.32.

VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The energy company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.02. VAALCO Energy had a return on equity of 15.63% and a net margin of 17.93%. The company had revenue of $121.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $108.91 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that VAALCO Energy will post 0.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VAALCO Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. VAALCO Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.45%.

About VAALCO Energy

VAALCO Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in Gabon, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, and Canada. The company holds 58.8% interest in the Etame production sharing contract related to the Etame Marin block covering an area of approximately 46,200 gross acres located offshore in the Republic of Gabon in West Africa.