Laredo Petroleum Holdings Rating Lowered to Hold at Topeka Capital Markets (LPI)

Laredo Petroleum Holdings (NYSE:LPI) was downgraded by analysts at Topeka Capital Markets from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, AnalystRatings.Net reports. They currently have a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Topeka Capital Markets’ price target suggests a potential upside of 1.30% from the stock’s previous close.

The analysts wrote, “LPI shares have appreciated 37.3% since our May 17, 2013 initiation, well above its peers which are up 19.1% on average over the same period. We attribute the outperformance to the Anadarko Basin sale and ramp up in activity, as well as the recent excitement around the potential of the Permian Basin. While there is potential upside relative to our $31.00 RNAV (see Figure 1 below), we believe there are better risk/reward names in our universe. While we continue to like the LPI story, with the above average leverage on the balance sheet (2.5x 2014 Net-debt/EBITDA vs. our universe at 1.6x) and at the current valuation (7.3x 2014 EV/EBITDA vs. peers at 7.0x), we believe it is prudent to move to the sidelines.”

Shares of Laredo Petroleum Holdings (NYSE:LPI) opened at 24.68 on Friday. Laredo Petroleum Holdings has a one year low of $15.78 and a one year high of $24.77. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $20.83. The company has a market cap of $3.141 billion and a P/E ratio of 85.10.

LPI has been the subject of a number of other recent research reports. Analysts at SunTrust raised their price target on shares of Laredo Petroleum Holdings from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note to investors on Wednesday, July 10th. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock. Separately, analysts at Canaccord Genuity initiated coverage on shares of Laredo Petroleum Holdings in a research note to investors on Wednesday, July 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock. Finally, analysts at Cowen and Company initiated coverage on shares of Laredo Petroleum Holdings in a research note to investors on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock.

Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Laredo Petroleum Holdings currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.38.

Laredo Petroleum Holdings, Inc (NYSE:LPI) is an independent energy company focused on the exploration, development and acquisition of oil and natural gas in the Permian and Mid-Continent regions of the United States.