Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.50.

Several research firms have recently commented on VTS. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vitesse Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Vitesse Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th.

Insider Activity

In other Vitesse Energy news, President Brian Cree sold 43,216 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.12, for a total value of $869,505.92. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 519,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,455,941.48. This trade represents a 7.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert W. Gerrity sold 90,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.14, for a total transaction of $1,827,443.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 514,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,365,917.02. This represents a 14.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 341,808 shares of company stock worth $6,758,540 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 18.15% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vitesse Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vitesse Energy by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,438,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,706,000 after acquiring an additional 165,534 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Vitesse Energy by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,420,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,363,000 after purchasing an additional 69,477 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Vitesse Energy by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,015,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,568,000 after purchasing an additional 32,790 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Vitesse Energy by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 954,590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,175,000 after purchasing an additional 108,742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vitesse Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 702,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,536,000 after buying an additional 3,364 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.63% of the company’s stock.

Vitesse Energy Price Performance

NYSE VTS opened at $19.89 on Wednesday. Vitesse Energy has a 52-week low of $17.44 and a 52-week high of $27.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $20.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.33. The company has a market cap of $791.03 million, a PE ratio of 31.56 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Vitesse Energy (NYSE:VTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $58.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $67.10 million. Vitesse Energy had a return on equity of 4.38% and a net margin of 9.23%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vitesse Energy will post 1.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vitesse Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.8%. Vitesse Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 277.78%.

About Vitesse Energy

Vitesse Energy (NYSE: VTS) is an independent exploration and production company primarily focused on onshore oil and gas assets in the United States. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, the company identifies, acquires and develops low-decline, shallow to intermediate depth vertical wells, targeting predictable production profiles and stable cash flows. Vitesse leverages a lean operational model to optimize well performance and reduce unit operating costs across its asset base.

The company’s core operations are concentrated in the Arkoma Basin of eastern Oklahoma and the Ark-La-Tex region, where it holds acreage positions in multiple formations.