Viking Fund Management LLC Buys 16,900 Shares of Texas Pacific Land Corporation $TPL

Viking Fund Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Texas Pacific Land Corporation (NYSE:TPL) by 845.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,900 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Texas Pacific Land were worth $5,428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Texas Pacific Land by 7.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,581,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,409,938,000 after buying an additional 189,842 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Texas Pacific Land in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $92,167,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Texas Pacific Land in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,606,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Texas Pacific Land by 65.1% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 90,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,578,000 after acquiring an additional 35,716 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Texas Pacific Land by 100.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 62,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,561,000 after acquiring an additional 31,417 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.94% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on TPL. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Texas Pacific Land from $350.00 to $639.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Texas Pacific Land from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Texas Pacific Land in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Texas Pacific Land to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $639.00.

Texas Pacific Land Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE TPL opened at $534.91 on Wednesday. Texas Pacific Land Corporation has a 12 month low of $269.23 and a 12 month high of $547.20. The stock has a market cap of $36.88 billion, a PE ratio of 76.67 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $441.33 and its 200 day moving average is $353.02.

Texas Pacific Land (NYSE:TPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.06. Texas Pacific Land had a net margin of 60.31% and a return on equity of 36.18%. The firm had revenue of $211.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.00 million.

Texas Pacific Land Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from Texas Pacific Land’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Texas Pacific Land’s payout ratio is presently 34.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Texas Pacific Land

In related news, Director Donna E. Epps purchased 895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $510.45 per share, for a total transaction of $456,852.75. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,921 shares in the company, valued at $1,491,024.45. This trade represents a 44.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Stephanie Buffington sold 1,608 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $503.00, for a total value of $808,824.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 2,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,072,899. The trade was a 42.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 6.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Texas Pacific Land Profile

Texas Pacific Land Corporation (NYSE: TPL) is a Texas-based land management company that derives revenue from the ownership and stewardship of large tracts of land and associated mineral rights in West Texas. The company’s origins trace to 19th century land grants associated with the Texas and Pacific Railway; over time those grant holdings have been retained and managed as a standalone corporate asset base. Texas Pacific Land is publicly listed and operates as a landowner and resource manager rather than as a traditional oil and gas producer.

The company’s primary activities include management of surface rights and leasing of land for energy and other commercial uses, administration of mineral royalty interests, and provision of water and related services to industrial customers.