Empirical Finance LLC Purchases New Shares in Range Resources Corporation $RRC

Empirical Finance LLC purchased a new position in shares of Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 14,788 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Range Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Range Resources during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Range Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 37.8% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RRC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Susquehanna cut their price target on Range Resources from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Range Resources from $44.00 to $43.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Range Resources in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $46.00 price target for the company. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Range Resources from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Range Resources from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Reginal Spiller sold 3,500 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $140,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 13,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $536,840. The trade was a 20.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Range Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:RRC opened at $41.92 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $39.49 and its 200-day moving average is $40.57. Range Resources Corporation has a 1-year low of $32.68 and a 1-year high of $48.31.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $759.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $744.78 million. Range Resources had a return on equity of 18.63% and a net margin of 25.04%.The firm’s revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Range Resources Corporation will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Range Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 11.05%.

Range Resources Company Profile

Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) is an independent natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and oil exploration and production company. Its activities include acquiring, developing and operating unconventional properties, with a primary focus on the Marcellus Shale in the Appalachian Basin.

The company’s production portfolio is centered on natural gas, along with NGLs such as ethane, propane, butane and natural gasoline, as well as condensate and oil. Range Resources also manages related gathering, processing, transportation and marketing activities to move its products from production areas to end markets.

Founded in 1976, Range Resources has built its operations through exploration, development and acquisitions in U.S.