Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) Stock Has Average Price Target of $67.20

Shares of Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $67.20.

Several analysts have issued reports on MTDR shares. Wall Street Zen cut Matador Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Matador Resources from $77.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Matador Resources from $77.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on Matador Resources in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Matador Resources from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th.

Matador Resources Trading Up 1.6%

MTDR opened at $60.80 on Wednesday. Matador Resources has a 12-month low of $37.14 and a 12-month high of $66.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 10.43 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $56.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.28.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $2.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.53. Matador Resources had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 13.18%. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Matador Resources will post 7.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. This is a positive change from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.3750. Matador Resources’s payout ratio is currently 25.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matador Resources

In other Matador Resources news, CFO Christopher Calvert acquired 2,500 shares of Matador Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $56.64 per share, for a total transaction of $141,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 44,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,492,160. This represents a 6.02% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Elsener purchased 850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $50.94 per share, for a total transaction of $43,299.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 114,879 shares in the company, valued at $5,851,936.26. This represents a 0.75% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought 23,144 shares of company stock valued at $1,211,793 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MTDR. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Matador Resources in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Matador Resources in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of Matador Resources in the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Matador Resources during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its stake in Matador Resources by 36.7% during the 1st quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 748 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. 91.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company (NYSE: MTDR) is an independent energy company engaged in the exploration, development, production and acquisition of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company focuses primarily on unconventional, or shale, resource plays and operates across both upstream exploration and production and related midstream activities.

Matador’s principal exploration and production operations are located in the Delaware Basin in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas. Its midstream operations, conducted primarily through San Mateo Midstream, provide natural gas gathering and processing, crude oil and produced-water gathering, and water sourcing and disposal services that support the company’s operations and other producers in the region.

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Matador has historically expanded through development and acquisitions in U.S.