Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Stock Bumped Up to Strong-Buy by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Matador Resources from $77.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Matador Resources from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on shares of Matador Resources in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $66.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Matador Resources from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.50.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

MTDR stock opened at $50.38 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 0.93. Matador Resources has a 1 year low of $37.74 and a 1 year high of $66.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $56.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.51.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The energy company reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Matador Resources had a return on equity of 14.32% and a net margin of 18.60%. Matador Resources’s revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.36 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Matador Resources will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This is an increase from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.3750. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. Matador Resources’s payout ratio is presently 25.86%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP William Elsener acquired 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $51.48 per share, for a total transaction of $46,332.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 115,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,960,302.92. This trade represents a 0.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Joseph Foran acquired 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $52.16 per share, for a total transaction of $521,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 25,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,336,182.72. This trade represents a 64.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 26,544 shares of company stock valued at $1,389,025. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matador Resources

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Matador Resources by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 24,436 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,260,000 after buying an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Matador Resources by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,621 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 60.9% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 185,598 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $9,573,000 after acquiring an additional 70,256 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 150,931 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $7,785,000 after acquiring an additional 37,676 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alpha Wealth Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Matador Resources during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $304,000. 91.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Matador Resources News

Here are the key news stories impacting Matador Resources this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Three executives bought shares on November 5: EVP William Elsener purchased 900 shares, CFO Christopher Calvert bought 2,000, and CAO Benjamin Colodney bought 500. Insider buying can signal confidence in the company’s prospects. Insider purchase report
• Positive Sentiment: Matador’s third-quarter results topped expectations: EPS was $2.08 versus $1.85 expected, while revenue reached $1.39 billion against $1.12 billion expected, up 33.9% year over year. The company also increased its quarterly dividend 17%, to $0.4375 per share. Q3 results presentation
• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $66 from $65 and maintained a Buy rating; Stifel Nicolaus also reaffirmed its Buy rating. Stifel Nicolaus rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Scotiabank reaffirmed its Hold rating, suggesting a more cautious view alongside the recent Buy calls. Scotiabank rating
• Negative Sentiment: A recent Q3 review pointed to margin compression despite production growth. That could temper the positive earnings and revenue surprises if profitability remains under pressure. Q3 analysis

Matador Resources Company Profile

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.