Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $25.50.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Liberty Energy from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Liberty Energy from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Citigroup raised Liberty Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $24.00 to $32.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Liberty Energy from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Liberty Energy from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th.

Liberty Energy Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:LBRT opened at $20.12 on Wednesday. Liberty Energy has a 1-year low of $12.38 and a 1-year high of $24.75. The company’s fifty day moving average is $22.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.82.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. Liberty Energy had a return on equity of 26.46% and a net margin of 10.43%. The business’s revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.90 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Liberty Energy will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

Liberty Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 6th will be issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 6th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is currently 10.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael Stock sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.87, for a total transaction of $417,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 806,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,822,388.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Michael Stock sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.87, for a total value of $417,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 806,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,822,388.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, President Ron Gusek sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.99, for a total transaction of $1,149,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 1,213,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,892,824.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 176,000 shares of company stock worth $3,980,900. 3.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Liberty Energy by 2.5% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 20,617 shares of the company’s stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Liberty Energy by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 14,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Liberty Energy by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 24,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 571 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 17,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $325,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Liberty Energy by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares in the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Liberty Energy

Liberty Energy Inc provides hydraulic services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas exploration, and production companies in North America. The company offers hydraulic fracturing services, including complementary services, such as wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (CNG) delivery, data analytics, related goods comprising sand mine operations, and technologies; and well site fueling and logistics.