Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Stock Price Down 4.1% – Here’s What Happened

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR)’s stock price traded down 4.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $44.74 and last traded at $44.55. 208,837 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 1,182,049 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MTDR shares. Stephens lifted their target price on Matador Resources from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Matador Resources from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Matador Resources in a report on Friday, January 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One investment 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.14.

Matador Resources Stock Down 3.7 %

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 firm’s fifty day moving average price is $57.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.57. The company has a market cap of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 3.22.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last posted its 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). The business had revenue of $970.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $967.10 million. Matador Resources had a net margin of 25.26% and a return on equity of 18.52%. Sell-side analysts predict that Matador Resources will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.3125 per share. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. This is a boost from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Matador Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Joseph Wm Foran purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $55.18 per share, with a total value of $110,360.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 42,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,331,410.18. This trade represents a 4.97 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Christopher P. Calvert acquired 1,000 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $49.27 per share, with a total value of $49,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 35,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,724,450. This trade represents a 2.94 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 20,330 shares of company stock worth $1,082,536. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Matador Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MTDR. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Matador Resources by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,008,421 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $54,122,000 after buying an additional 107,827 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 455,662 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $22,519,000 after acquiring an additional 65,487 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Matador Resources by 81.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 30,304 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 13,583 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Matador Resources by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 139,254 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $8,088,000 after acquiring an additional 20,172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Matador Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $10,526,000. Institutional investors 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.