Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Reduces Stock Position in Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its stake in shares of Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) by 2.4% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 59,518 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 1,447 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Matador Resources were worth $3,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Matador Resources by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,124,705 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $742,797,000 after buying an additional 103,713 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Matador Resources by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,028,782 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $229,083,000 after purchasing an additional 87,299 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Matador Resources by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,430,593 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $195,064,000 after purchasing an additional 202,303 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Matador Resources by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,206,041 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $125,435,000 after purchasing an additional 531,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in Matador Resources by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,035,702 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $135,924,000 after purchasing an additional 215,298 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MTDR shares. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Matador Resources in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens decreased their price target on Matador Resources from $83.00 to $81.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Matador Resources from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Capital One Financial upgraded Matador Resources from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Matador Resources in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.17.

Matador Resources Stock Performance

NYSE MTDR traded down $4.56 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $54.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,139,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,650,792. Matador Resources has a fifty-two week low of $51.72 and a fifty-two week high of $71.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.47. The firm has a market cap of $6.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.47 and a beta of 3.29.

Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The energy company reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.29. Matador Resources had a return on equity of 21.12% and a net margin of 29.01%. The firm had revenue of $847.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $822.55 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Matador Resources will post 7.87 EPS for the current year.

Matador Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Matador Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Matador Resources news, EVP Bryan A. Erman purchased 1,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $55.90 per share, with a total value of $97,825.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $97,825. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.