Morgan Stanley Cuts Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) Price Target to $68.00

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) had its price target reduced by Morgan Stanley from $84.00 to $68.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the energy company’s stock.

MTDR has been the subject of several other research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Matador Resources from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $72.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Matador Resources from $76.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Matador Resources from $90.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Matador Resources in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.79.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

NYSE MTDR opened at $50.46 on Thursday. Matador Resources has a 1-year low of $43.89 and a 1-year high of $71.08. The company has a 50 day moving average of $54.28 and a 200-day moving average of $54.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 3.17.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The energy company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by ($0.05). Matador Resources had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 25.26%. The business had revenue of $970.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $967.10 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Matador Resources will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matador Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. This is a positive change from Matador Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Matador Resources’s payout ratio is presently 17.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Timothy E. Parker bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $44.67 per share, for a total transaction of $89,340.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 83,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,742,899.30. The trade was a 2.45 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul W. Harvey purchased 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $55.20 per share, with a total value of $33,120.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 27,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,541,018.40. This represents a 2.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 21,350 shares of company stock worth $1,100,769 over the last quarter. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Matador Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its position in Matador Resources by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 500 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Matador Resources by 68.3% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 510 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the period. ClearAlpha Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Matador Resources by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. ClearAlpha Technologies LP now owns 5,250 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc raised its stake in Matador Resources by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 8,188 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Matador Resources by 108.5% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 492 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the period. 91.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, production, and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through two segments, Exploration and Production; and Midstream. The company primarily holds interests in the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays in the Delaware Basin in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas.