Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) Downgraded to “Sector Perform” Rating by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $19.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $24.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Liberty Energy from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Liberty Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $19.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Liberty Energy from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Liberty Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Liberty Energy from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.80.

Liberty Energy Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:LBRT opened at $15.42 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.55. The stock has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.24 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Liberty Energy has a 12 month low of $13.86 and a 12 month high of $24.75.

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 return on equity of 14.28% and a net margin of 7.32%. Equities analysts predict that Liberty Energy will post 0.58 EPS for the current year.

Liberty Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is currently 17.11%.

Insider Activity at Liberty Energy

In other news, CFO Michael Stock sold 20,000 shares of Liberty Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.82, for a total value of $416,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 680,207 shares in the company, valued at $14,161,909.74. The trade was a 2.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $808,350. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 237.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,401 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Liberty Energy by 604.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Liberty Energy by 257.8% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,583 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in Liberty Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Liberty Energy by 176.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 2,184 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

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.