W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) Stock Rating Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of W&T Offshore in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Roth Capital set a $4.25 target price on shares of W&T Offshore in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, W&T Offshore presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.25.

W&T Offshore Stock Performance

W&T Offshore stock opened at $4.05 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $611.31 million, a P/E ratio of -11.91 and a beta of 0.35. W&T Offshore has a 52 week low of $1.50 and a 52 week high of $5.08.

W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The oil and gas company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.07. The business had revenue of $167.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.97 million. Research analysts forecast that W&T Offshore will post -0.09 earnings per share for the current year.

W&T Offshore Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a dividend of $0.01 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. W&T Offshore’s dividend payout ratio is currently -11.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W&T Offshore

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in W&T Offshore in the second quarter valued at about $26,065,000. Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W&T Offshore by 185.8% in the second quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 1,589,137 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,006,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033,167 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of W&T Offshore by 10.4% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,137,443 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,879,000 after acquiring an additional 106,779 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of W&T Offshore in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,353,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of W&T Offshore by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 649,490 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,215,000 after purchasing an additional 26,262 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.88% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about W&T Offshore

Here are the key news stories impacting W&T Offshore this week:

• Positive Sentiment: W&T reported third-quarter revenue of $167.1 million, above the $145.0 million consensus estimate and up 31% year over year. Adjusted EPS was $0.01 versus analysts’ expected loss of $0.06. W&T Offshore earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Production reached 38.2 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day, exceeding the company’s guidance, while third-quarter Adjusted EBITDA increased 30% year over year to $51.1 million. Free cash flow was $33.2 million, compared with negative free cash flow in the prior-year quarter. W&T Offshore third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Liquidity improved to $234.7 million, cash rose to $191.3 million and net debt declined 20% sequentially, reducing net debt to 0.9 times trailing twelve-month Adjusted EBITDA. The conversion of its credit facility to a reserve-based structure also provides potential borrowing capacity of up to $100 million. W&T Offshore liquidity and credit facility update
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared another $0.01 quarterly dividend, maintaining its 12-quarter record of shareholder distributions. W&T Offshore dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Higher crude prices, supported by falling inventories and reports of possible U.S. military options involving Iran, could benefit W&T’s realized oil revenue. However, geopolitical developments also increase commodity-price volatility and are not company-specific. Oil forecast and geopolitical risks
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the adjusted profit, W&T posted a GAAP net loss of $13.6 million, or $0.09 per share, partly reflecting derivative losses and higher expenses. The company also issued 3.6 million shares through its ATM program, creating dilution for existing shareholders. W&T Offshore earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders recorded eight sales and no purchases over the past six months, while surety litigation remains unresolved and fourth-quarter production faces temporary hurricane and facility-turnaround disruptions.

About W&T Offshore

W&T Offshore, Inc is an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company focused on the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The company explores for, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids from offshore properties.

W&T Offshore’s operations have included assets in the federal and state waters of the Gulf of Mexico, spanning shelf and deepwater areas. Its activities include acquiring exploration and production interests, drilling and completing wells, and managing offshore production and related infrastructure.

Founded in 1983 by Tracy W.