Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $22.20.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on LBRT shares. Barclays reduced their target price on Liberty Energy from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Liberty Energy from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Liberty Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Liberty Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $19.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Liberty Energy from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th.

Liberty Energy Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of Liberty Energy stock opened at $20.63 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.23. Liberty Energy has a 52-week low of $16.57 and a 52-week high of $24.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 1.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $19.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.80.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.16 by ($0.06). Liberty Energy had a net margin of 8.02% and a return on equity of 18.50%. Equities research analysts forecast that Liberty Energy will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Liberty Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is 15.24%.

Insider Transactions at Liberty Energy

In other Liberty Energy news, CFO Michael Stock sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.45, for a total value of $92,250.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 720,207 shares in the company, valued at $13,287,819.15. The trade was a 0.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher A. Wright sold 16,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.23, for a total value of $291,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,562,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,720,080.99. The trade was a 0.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 82,973 shares of company stock valued at $1,586,335 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Liberty Energy by 3.7% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 19,456 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 82,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after purchasing an additional 708 shares during the period. Andina Capital Management LLC raised its position in Liberty Energy by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 19,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,000 after buying an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Liberty Energy by 96.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Liberty Energy by 24.8% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 974 shares during the period. 98.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Liberty Energy

Liberty Energy Inc provides hydraulic services and related technologies to onshore oil and natural gas exploration, and production companies in North America. The company offers hydraulic fracturing services, including complementary services, such as wireline services, proppant delivery solutions, field gas processing and treating, compressed natural gas (CNG) delivery, data analytics, related goods comprising sand mine operations, and technologies; and well site fueling and logistics.