Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Price Target Raised to $47.00

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) had its price target increased by Mizuho from $40.00 to $47.00 in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Range Resources from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Range Resources from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Range Resources to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Range Resources from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Range Resources from $37.00 to $31.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Range Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.00.

Range Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RRC opened at $32.92 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $33.06 and its 200 day moving average is $32.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Range Resources has a 52 week low of $27.29 and a 52 week high of $39.33. The stock has a market cap of $7.94 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63 and a beta of 1.85.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.16. Range Resources had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 17.63%. The company had revenue of $615.03 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $617.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. Range Resources’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Range Resources will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Range Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Range Resources

In other news, Director Charles G. Griffie acquired 1,275 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $31.46 per share, for a total transaction of $40,111.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 5,921 shares in the company, valued at $186,274.66. This trade represents a 27.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Ashley Kavanaugh sold 12,700 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.45, for a total transaction of $399,415.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,121.50. This trade represents a 56.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Range Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RRC. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Range Resources by 21.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,709 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 3.1% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 10,790 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Range Resources by 5.4% during the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,801 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank increased its holdings in Range Resources by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 6,848 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inscription Capital LLC raised its position in Range Resources by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 12,536 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $386,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.93% of the company’s stock.

About Range Resources

Range Resources Corporation operates as an independent natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, and condensate company in the United States. The company engages in the exploration, development, and acquisition of natural gas and crude oil properties located in the Appalachian region. It sells natural gas to utilities, marketing and midstream companies, and industrial users; NGLs to petrochemical end users, marketers/traders, and natural gas processors; and oil and condensate to crude oil processors, transporters, and refining and marketing companies.