KeyCorp Comments on Vital Energy’s Q3 Earnings (NYSE:VTLE)

Vital Energy, Inc. (NYSE:VTLE) – Stock analysts at KeyCorp dropped their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for shares of Vital Energy in a research note issued on Sunday, April 20th. KeyCorp analyst T. Rezvan now anticipates that the company will earn $1.72 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.09. The consensus estimate for Vital Energy’s current full-year earnings is $8.49 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Vital Energy’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.81 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $7.67 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.60 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.81 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.50 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.58 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $6.49 EPS.

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $534.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $550.90 million. Vital Energy had a negative net margin of 8.89% and a positive return on equity of 9.48%.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Mizuho boosted their target price on Vital Energy from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Vital Energy from $36.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Williams Trading set a $27.00 price objective on Vital Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James lowered their target price on Vital Energy from $44.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Vital Energy from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.92.

Vital Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Vital Energy stock opened at $15.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $599.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.26 and a beta of 2.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.78. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $21.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.70. Vital Energy has a one year low of $12.30 and a one year high of $55.87.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vital Energy by 805.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 915 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 814 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Vital Energy during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Vital Energy by 276.9% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Vital Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Vital Energy by 247.4% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,553 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. 86.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Bryan Lemmerman sold 10,000 shares of Vital Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total transaction of $207,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 97,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,022,335.88. This trade represents a 9.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Kathryn Anne Hill sold 5,673 shares of Vital Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.73, for a total value of $117,601.29. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 46,413 shares in the company, valued at $962,141.49. This trade represents a 10.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,647 shares of company stock valued at $448,742 over the last 90 days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vital Energy Company Profile

Vital Energy, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc in January 2023.