Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $73.79.

MTDR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $77.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Matador Resources from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Matador Resources from $84.00 to $68.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $90.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th.

Matador Resources Stock Down 14.3 %

Shares of Matador Resources stock opened at $38.21 on Tuesday. Matador Resources has a 1 year low of $37.98 and a 1 year high of $71.08. The company has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.35 and a beta of 3.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $52.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.78.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The energy company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by ($0.05). Matador Resources had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 25.26%. The company had revenue of $970.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $967.10 million. As a group, analysts expect that Matador Resources will post 8.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.3125 per share. This is a positive change from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. Matador Resources’s payout ratio is currently 17.51%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Glenn W. Stetson acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $53.06 per share, for a total transaction of $53,060.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 91,680 shares in the company, valued at $4,864,540.80. This trade represents a 1.10 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Christopher P. Calvert bought 1,300 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of $55.17 per share, with a total value of $71,721.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 34,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,875,780. This trade represents a 3.98 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 21,350 shares of company stock valued at $1,100,769. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Matador Resources by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,555,553 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $706,375,000 after purchasing an additional 187,633 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Matador Resources by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,444,723 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $306,313,000 after buying an additional 30,184 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Matador Resources by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,698,606 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $151,824,000 after buying an additional 555,245 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Matador Resources by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,008,730 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $99,297,000 after acquiring an additional 36,921 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Matador Resources by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,669,957 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $93,952,000 after acquiring an additional 258,958 shares in the last quarter. 91.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, production, and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through two segments, Exploration and Production; and Midstream. The company primarily holds interests in the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays in the Delaware Basin in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas.