Navellier & Associates Inc. Raises Stock Position in Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM)

Navellier & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 81,610 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,300 shares during the period. Navellier & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Viper Energy were worth $4,005,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VNOM. State Street Corp raised its stake in Viper Energy by 78.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,833,257 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $172,918,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682,183 shares during the period. Yaupon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Viper Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $18,044,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama purchased a new stake in shares of Viper Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $12,980,000. Zimmer Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 344.0% in the 3rd quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 325,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $14,661,000 after acquiring an additional 251,800 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,698,661 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $76,647,000 after acquiring an additional 234,048 shares during the period. 87.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Viper Energy Trading Down 3.7 %

Shares of VNOM stock opened at $48.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 7.24 and a current ratio of 7.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.74 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.40. Viper Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.45 and a fifty-two week high of $56.76.

Viper Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This is a boost from Viper Energy’s previous dividend of $0.22. Viper Energy’s payout ratio is 51.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VNOM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Viper Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target (down from $64.00) on shares of Viper Energy in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.55.

Viper Energy Company Profile

Viper Energy, Inc engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.