Vermilion Energy (NYSE:VET) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Vermilion Energy Inc. (NYSE:VET) (TSE:VET) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $14.02, but opened at $12.69. Vermilion Energy shares last traded at $12.8070, with a volume of 764,232 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vermilion Energy in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets raised shares of Vermilion Energy from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Vermilion Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vermilion Energy in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Vermilion Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.00.

Vermilion Energy Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $11.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.46. The company has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.16 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Vermilion Energy (NYSE:VET) (TSE:VET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.33. Vermilion Energy had a negative net margin of 34.30% and a positive return on equity of 3.80%. The company had revenue of $334.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $384.74 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Vermilion Energy Inc. will post 0.22 EPS for the current year.

Vermilion Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.135 per share. This is a positive change from Vermilion Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Vermilion Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -13.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vermilion Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Vermilion Energy by 178.7% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,450 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 4,136 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Vermilion Energy during the third quarter worth about $56,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Vermilion Energy by 18.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,249 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC bought a new stake in Vermilion Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $92,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in Vermilion Energy by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,846 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 1,289 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 31.91% of the company’s stock.

About Vermilion Energy

Vermilion Energy Inc is a Canadian-based international oil and gas producer headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Established in 1994, the company focuses on the exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas reserves through its wholly owned and joint venture assets. Vermilion’s upstream operations target a balance of oil and gas projects across various regions, with an emphasis on high-quality resource plays that can deliver stable cash flow and long-term reserves replacement.

Vermilion’s product portfolio includes light and medium crude oil, heavy oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs).