Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Price Target Lowered to $68.00 at Morgan Stanley

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) had its price target lowered by Morgan Stanley from $84.00 to $68.00 in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the energy company’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Raymond James cut their price objective on Matador Resources from $77.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Matador Resources from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Matador Resources from $76.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Matador Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.79.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:MTDR opened at $51.53 on Thursday. Matador Resources has a 1-year low of $43.89 and a 1-year high of $71.08. The stock has a market cap of $6.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.22 and a beta of 3.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $54.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.84.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The energy company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by ($0.05). Matador Resources had a net margin of 25.26% and a return on equity of 18.52%. The business had revenue of $970.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $967.10 million. On average, research analysts expect that Matador Resources will post 8.53 earnings per share 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 $0.3125 dividend. This is a boost from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. Matador Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 17.51%.

Insider Activity

In other Matador Resources news, insider Van H. Singleton II purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $53.21 per share, with a total value of $106,420.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 289,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,384,873.35. This trade represents a 0.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Joseph Wm Foran acquired 6,000 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $53.94 per share, with a total value of $323,640.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,124,103.26. This trade represents a 17.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 21,350 shares of company stock valued at $1,100,769. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 4.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,434,926 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $70,914,000 after buying an additional 57,254 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in Matador Resources by 40.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 138,580 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $6,849,000 after acquiring an additional 39,630 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Matador Resources by 42.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 69,082 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $3,414,000 after acquiring an additional 20,700 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd boosted its position in shares of Matador Resources by 194.0% during the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 16,534 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $817,000 after purchasing an additional 10,910 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Matador Resources by 162.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 478,795 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $23,662,000 after purchasing an additional 296,663 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.98% of the company’s stock.

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.