Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $28.69 and last traded at $28.5720, with a volume of 258614 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Liberty Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Liberty Energy from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Liberty Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Liberty Energy from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Liberty Energy in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Liberty Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.08.

Liberty Energy Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a PE ratio of 31.24 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $22.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.57.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.21. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $880.59 million. Liberty Energy had a return on equity of 1.24% and a net margin of 3.69%.The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. Analysts predict that Liberty Energy Inc. will post 0.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Liberty Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is currently 40.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider R Sean Elliott sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.40, for a total value of $635,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 343,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,716,010. This trade represents a 6.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 9,696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $25.79 per share, with a total value of $250,059.84. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 27,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $710,978.72. This trade represents a 54.25% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Liberty Energy

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Liberty Energy during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Liberty Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Liberty Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. First Horizon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 58.2% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Liberty Energy in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 98.22% of the company’s stock.

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. As of as of December 31, 2023, the company owned and operated a fleet of approximately 40 active hydraulic fracturing; and two sand mines in the Permian Basin.