Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Research Coverage Started at Stifel Nicolaus

Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) in a research report report published on Thursday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $46.00 price objective on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on RRC. Raymond James Financial set a $45.00 price target on Range Resources in a research report on Monday, July 27th. UBS Group set a $42.00 price objective on Range Resources in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Range Resources from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Range Resources from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Range Resources from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.88.

Range Resources Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Range Resources stock opened at $41.17 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Range Resources has a twelve month low of $32.68 and a twelve month high of $48.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.37 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $39.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.57.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.13. Range Resources had a return on equity of 18.63% and a net margin of 25.04%.The company had revenue of $759.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $744.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. Range Resources’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Range Resources will post 3.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Range Resources

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Range Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Range Resources in the second quarter worth approximately $868,085,000. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Range Resources by 3,604.0% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 10,200,324 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $379,350,000 after purchasing an additional 9,924,937 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Range Resources by 59.3% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 11,817,550 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $445,196,000 after purchasing an additional 4,398,042 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Range Resources by 517.6% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,440,277 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $91,852,000 after purchasing an additional 2,045,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Range Resources during the 2nd quarter worth $67,470,000. 98.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.