Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $17.14.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Liberty Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $24.00 to $19.00 in a report on Monday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $11.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Liberty Energy in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays cut their target price on Liberty Energy from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Liberty Energy in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Liberty Energy from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Liberty Energy by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 897,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,842,000 after buying an additional 24,825 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Liberty Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $6,792,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in Liberty Energy by 197.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 286,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,471,000 after acquiring an additional 190,445 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP acquired a new stake in Liberty Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,779,000. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY boosted its position in shares of Liberty Energy by 315.8% during the 4th quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 133,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,649,000 after purchasing an additional 101,144 shares in the last quarter. 98.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Liberty Energy Trading Up 6.2%

NYSE:LBRT opened at $12.56 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of 6.72 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s 50 day moving average is $12.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Liberty Energy has a 52 week low of $9.50 and a 52 week high of $24.43.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $977.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $960.64 million. Liberty Energy had a return on equity of 14.28% and a net margin of 7.32%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.48 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Liberty Energy will post 0.58 EPS for the current year.

Liberty Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Liberty Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.19%.

Liberty Energy Company Profile

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.