Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 1,893 Shares of Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Viper Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VNOM) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 237,200 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,893 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Viper Energy worth $11,639,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VNOM. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 4,836.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 74,596 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,365,000 after buying an additional 73,085 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Viper Energy in the third quarter valued at about $984,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Viper Energy by 16.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,698,661 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $76,647,000 after acquiring an additional 234,048 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments purchased a new stake in shares of Viper Energy during the third quarter worth about $706,000. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama bought a new stake in Viper Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $12,980,000. 87.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Viper Energy from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Viper Energy from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Viper Energy from $78.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Viper Energy from $64.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Viper Energy in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Viper Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.55.

Viper Energy Price Performance

Shares of Viper Energy stock opened at $45.54 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.55 and a beta of 1.71. 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 50 day moving average price of $49.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.49. Viper Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $34.45 and a one year high of $56.76.

Viper Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Viper Energy’s previous dividend of $0.22. Viper Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.70%.

Viper Energy 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.