At a glance
Viper Energy, Inc. is worth $16.69B. Revenue grew 62.0% to $1.40B in fiscal 2025, at a loss. It pays a 5.27% dividend yield, and returned $676.0M to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2023–FY2025. The stock returned +35.2% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +23.6% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 77.6% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 32.4% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 18 months and 4 months after the lows.
The business in plain English
Viper Energy does not drill wells. It owns mineral and royalty interests: the right to a share of the oil and gas produced from land, mostly in the Permian Basin of West Texas. Oil companies that lease the land, called operators, pay all drilling and running costs. Viper collects a slice of the sales revenue. It reports one business segment.
Oil drives the results. For the year ended December 31, 2025, revenue was about $1.4 billion. Oil brought in $1.13 billion, or 81%. Natural gas liquids, such as propane, added 11%, and natural gas 4%. At year-end, Viper held 96,003 net royalty acres (acres adjusted for its ownership share), with 43,355 producing wells. Production averaged 95,126 barrels of oil equivalent per day (gas converted into oil terms) over the year.
Viper is closely tied to Diamondback Energy. As of December 31, 2025, Diamondback held about 42.1% of the voting power and operated about 35% of Viper's net royalty acreage. Viper has no employees; Diamondback supplies its managers and staff. Viper grew quickly in 2025. It bought more Permian royalties from a Diamondback subsidiary in May and bought Sitio Royalties in an all-stock deal valued at about $4.0 billion in August. On February 9, 2026, it sold all its royalty interests outside the Permian for about $617 million.
Price history
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VNOM +35.2% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By product or service
| Oil income | $1.13B | 81.1% |
| Natural gas liquids income | $159.0M | 11.4% |
| Natural gas income | $56.0M | 4% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2026 (ended Jun 30, 2026), revenue was $677.0M, up 127.9% from a year earlier, and net income was $142.0M (+283.8%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $1.40B (+62.0% year over year) with a -4.9% net margin.
Financial health check
| Operating margin | -10% weak |
|---|---|
| Return on equity (FY2025) | -1.5% weak |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | -0.5% weak |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-1.60B weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2023 | $828.0M | $200.0M | — |
| FY2024 | $861.0M | $359.0M | — |
| FY2025 | $1.40B | $-68.0M | — |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $16.69B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | — |
| Dividend yield | 5.27% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VNOM price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +25.4% | +35.2% | +25.4% | +23.6% | +19.2% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +25.4% |
| 2025 | -16.5% |
| 2024 | +65.4% |
| 2023 | +6.7% |
| 2022 | +61.8% |
| 2021 | +94.0% |
| 2020 | -50.7% |
| 2019 | +0.6% |
| 2018 | +19.6% |
| 2017 | +55.9% |
| 2016 | +20.5% |
| 2015 | -18.9% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 77.6% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 77.6%, back to its old high 18.2 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Gained 53.5% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 32.4%, back to its old high 4.1 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-11-03 to 2026-11-03 (14 read): 0 open-market purchases and 2 sales ($589.5M).
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 4, 2026 | Diamondback Energy, Inc. 10% owner | sell | $566.2M |
| Mar 19, 2026 | Diamondback Energy, Inc. 10% owner | sell | $23.3M |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| Capital World Investors | 13.6% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| BlackRock, Inc. | 9.8% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Kimmeridge Energy Management Company, LLC | 7.5% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.15% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. | 4.7% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Wellington Management Group LLP | 4.5% | Jun 30, 2026 |
| Tumbleweed Royalty IV, LLC | 3.99% | Mar 2, 2026 |
| BX Royal Aggregator LP | 0.3% | Mar 31, 2026 |
ETFs with the most weight in VNOM
| INFL Horizon Kinetics Inflation Beneficiaries ETF | 5.52% |
| WBIG WBI BullBear Yield 3000 ETF | 4.45% |
| KOOL North Shore Equity Rotation ETF | 2.86% |
| FXN First Trust Energy AlphaDEX Fund | 2.5% |
| OSCV Opus Small Cap Value ETF | 2.37% |
| GRPM Invesco S&P MidCap 400 GARP ETF | 2.04% |
| FTIF First Trust Bloomberg Inflation Sensitive Equity ETF | 1.84% |
| JMID Janus Henderson Mid Cap Growth Alpha ETF | 1.29% |
What could go wrong
- Diamondback controls Viper and runs it. Diamondback held about 42.1% of voting power as of December 31, 2025, and supplies all of Viper's staff. Its interests may conflict with other shareholders', and it is not obliged to offer Viper deals.
- Oil prices drive most of the income. Oil brought in about 81% of 2025 revenue. From 2023 through 2025, the benchmark US oil price swung between $55.27 and $93.68 a barrel. Weaker prices led to $768 million of non-cash write-downs in 2025.
- Viper can't control how much gets drilled. Operators decide when and where to drill. In 2025, Diamondback put most excess cash toward debt repayment and shareholder returns rather than more drilling. Undeveloped reserves may take longer to tap than expected.
- Heavy reliance on a single basin. Nearly all of Viper's properties sit in the Permian Basin, so local weather, pipeline and storage limits, or production caps there could hurt results. Its reserves are also concentrated in a few rock layers.
- The dividend can vary each quarter. Viper pays a base dividend plus a variable portion. Cash available for dividends can swing sharply from quarter to quarter, and the board can change or revoke the policy at any time.
- Debt and big deals add risk. Total debt was about $1.68 billion against $77 million of cash as of June 30, 2026. Viper may not get the expected benefits from the Sitio deal, and lower prices could shrink its credit line.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released
- Executive or board change
- Unregistered sale of shares
- Quarterly results released
- Other company announcement
- Major agreement signed; New debt or financial obligation
- Bylaws or fiscal year changed; Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Major agreement signed; Investor presentation or announcement; Other company announcement
- Investor presentation or announcement; Other company announcement
For income and retirement investors
Viper pays a base dividend plus a variable amount, so payments can change from quarter to quarter rather than rise steadily. Dividends per share were $1.74 in fiscal 2023, $2.33 in 2024 and $2.30 in 2025, so there is no streak of annual increases. In 2025 it paid that $2.30 despite a loss of $0.48 per share, which included $768 million of non-cash write-downs. The dividend yield was 5.27% as of October 28, 2026. Viper has a buyback program, but dividends, totaling $676 million over 2023 to 2025, have been its main way of returning cash.
The stock has swung hard in downturns. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 77.6% between February 19 and March 23, 2020, and took about 18 months to recover. During the 2022 bear market it rose 53.5% while the broader market fell, though it dropped 32.4% between June and July 2022. A single stock like Viper carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does Viper Energy make money?
Viper Energy makes money from royalties. It owns mineral and royalty interests, mostly in the Permian Basin of West Texas, and collects a share of the oil and gas that operators produce on that land. The operators pay the drilling and operating costs. In fiscal 2025, Viper's revenue was about $1.4 billion, with oil bringing in about 81%, natural gas liquids about 11% and natural gas about 4%. Its income rises and falls with energy prices and drilling activity.
Does Viper Energy pay a steady dividend?
It pays a dividend, but not a fixed one. Viper pays a quarterly base dividend plus a variable amount, so payouts can change a lot from quarter to quarter, and its board can change or revoke the policy at any time. Dividends per share were $1.74 in fiscal 2023, $2.33 in 2024 and $2.30 in 2025, so there is no streak of yearly increases. The dividend yield was 5.27% as of October 28, 2026. That variability matters for anyone relying on dividends to cover regular bills.
Is Viper Energy owned by Diamondback?
Partly. Diamondback Energy is Viper's controlling shareholder. As of December 31, 2025, it beneficially owned shares carrying about 42.1% of Viper's voting power. Viper has no employees; Diamondback's staff manage it, and Diamondback operated about 35% of Viper's net royalty acreage. Insider filings show Diamondback sold about $566 million of Viper stock on March 4, 2026, and about $23 million on March 19, 2026. Its interests may not always match those of other shareholders.
Why did Viper Energy lose money in 2025?
Mostly because of accounting write-downs rather than weak sales. Revenue grew 62% to about $1.4 billion in fiscal 2025, but Viper recorded $768 million of non-cash ceiling test impairments. A ceiling test is an accounting rule that caps the book value of oil and gas properties; when prices fall, the excess gets written off. The result was a net loss of $68 million, or $0.48 per share. In the quarter ended June 30, 2026, Viper earned $142 million on revenue of $677 million.
How much debt does Viper Energy have?
Viper had about $1.68 billion of total debt and $77 million of cash and investments as of June 30, 2026, for net debt of about $1.6 billion. Shareholders' equity was about $5.0 billion on that date. The company says it aims to keep a conservative balance sheet and reduce debt, but its annual report lists its substantial debt as a risk. Lower oil and gas prices could also reduce how much lenders let it borrow under its credit line.