Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Liberty Energy Inc. (NYSE:LBRT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $31.89 and last traded at $31.7330, with a volume of 998964 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LBRT shares. Wall Street Zen raised Liberty Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Liberty Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Liberty Energy from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Liberty Energy in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Liberty Energy from $21.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $26.42.

Liberty Energy Trading Up 4.4%

The stock has a market cap of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of 35.25 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Liberty Energy (NYSE:LBRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.21. Liberty Energy had a return on equity of 1.24% and a net margin of 3.69%.The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $880.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Liberty Energy Inc. will post 0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Liberty Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. Liberty Energy’s payout ratio is presently 40.45%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Michael Stock sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total value of $634,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 784,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,918,706.22. This represents a 3.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 9,696 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.79 per share, with a total value of $250,059.84. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Liberty Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Liberty Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Liberty Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. First Horizon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Liberty Energy by 58.2% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Liberty Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Liberty Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. 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. 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.