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Investing.com - Texas Capital Securities downgraded Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) from Buy to Hold and slashed its price target to $18.00 from $52.00 following news of the company’s acquisition. The stock, which has declined over 50% in the past year, currently trades at $17.91. InvestingPro data shows the company trades at a notably low Price/Book ratio of 0.32.
The downgrade comes after Vital Energy announced on August 25, 2025, that it entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Crescent Energy in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.1 billion, including net debt. According to InvestingPro analysis, Vital Energy operates with a significant debt burden of $2.39 billion, which likely influenced the transaction structure. Get detailed insights on over 10 additional key metrics with InvestingPro’s comprehensive analysis.
The transaction terms specify an exchange ratio of 1.9062 shares of Crescent Class A common stock for each share of Vital common stock, which forms the basis for Texas Capital’s new $18.00 price target.
Texas Capital Securities cited the pending acquisition as the direct reason for its downgrade of Vital Energy’s stock rating from its previous Buy recommendation.
Crescent Energy , the acquiring company in this transaction, is not currently covered by Texas Capital Securities in its research portfolio.
In other recent news, Crescent Energy Company has announced a significant development with its acquisition of Vital Energy in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.1 billion, including Vital’s net debt. This agreement allows Vital shareholders to receive 1.9062 shares of Crescent Class A common stock for each Vital share, reflecting a premium to the 30-day volume-weighted average price. Fitch Ratings has responded to this announcement by revising Crescent’s outlook to positive from stable, while affirming its Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings at ’BB-’. The acquisition has also caught the attention of KeyBanc, which maintained its Sector Weight rating on Vital Energy, noting that the acquisition report "may be credible." The deal was initially reported by Reuters, highlighting Crescent Energy’s advanced talks to acquire Vital Energy. These developments indicate a strategic move by Crescent Energy, as it integrates Vital Energy into its operations.
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