Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 228,177 Shares of Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM) by 3,200.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 235,307 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 228,177 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Viper Energy worth $10,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its position 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 valued at $172,918,000 after acquiring an additional 1,682,183 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Viper Energy by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,085,841 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $78,282,000 after purchasing an additional 224,021 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in 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 worth $76,647,000 after purchasing an additional 234,048 shares during the period. Merewether Investment Management LP lifted its stake in Viper Energy by 22.9% in the third quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 860,600 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $38,822,000 after purchasing an additional 160,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Viper Energy by 2.6% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 841,414 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,578,000 after buying an additional 21,420 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.72% of the company’s stock.

Viper Energy Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VNOM opened at $48.61 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.16 billion, a PE ratio of 20.86 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a current ratio of 7.24, a quick ratio of 7.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Viper Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.21 and a 12-month high of $56.76. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.88.

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.02. Viper Energy had a net margin of 24.65% and a return on equity of 6.72%. The business had revenue of $209.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $210.54 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 28.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Viper Energy, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Viper Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. Viper Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Viper Energy from $64.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America started coverage on Viper Energy in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $64.00 target price for the company. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Viper Energy from $57.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Viper Energy in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.18.

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.