Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) Increases Dividend to $0.56 Per Share

Vitesse Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTS) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, March 11th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a dividend of 0.5625 per share on Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This is a 7.1% increase from Vitesse Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53.

Vitesse Energy has a payout ratio of 163.0% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities research analysts expect Vitesse Energy to earn $1.16 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $2.25 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 194.0%.

Vitesse Energy Price Performance

NYSE VTS opened at $23.79 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $917.77 million, a PE ratio of 16.29 and a beta of 0.53. Vitesse Energy has a 52 week low of $21.83 and a 52 week high of $28.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.77.

Insider Transactions at Vitesse Energy

In related news, CAO Mike Morella sold 8,143 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.69, for a total value of $217,336.67. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 81,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,178,304.35. This represents a 9.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael Sabol sold 6,714 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.70, for a total transaction of $179,263.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 63,411 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,073.70. This trade represents a 9.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 15.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VTS shares. Northland Capmk raised shares of Vitesse Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Alliance Global Partners raised shares of Vitesse Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $29.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Vitesse Energy from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th.

Vitesse Energy Company Profile

Vitesse Energy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, development, and production of non-operated oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It owns and acquires non-operated working interest and royalty interest ownership in the Williston Basin properties located in North Dakota and Montana.