Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) Stock Jumps 4.1% – Time to Buy?

Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR)’s share price shot up 4.1% during trading on Friday. The stock traded as high as $38.04 and last traded at $37.9290. 1,259,155 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 5,049,196 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on AR shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Antero Resources from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Antero Resources in a report on Wednesday. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $46.00 target price for the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Antero Resources from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Antero Resources in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They set a “hold” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Antero Resources from $49.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.11.

Antero Resources Trading Up 4.9%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.48. The company has a market cap of $11.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99 and a beta of 0.54.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Antero Resources

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Antero Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $966,982,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Antero Resources by 12.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,239,070 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $434,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153,422 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Antero Resources by 177.4% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,611,248 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $153,261,000 after purchasing an additional 2,309,388 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Antero Resources by 12.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,478,218 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $147,616,000 after purchasing an additional 377,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor acquired a new stake in shares of Antero Resources in the second quarter valued at approximately $100,212,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.04% of the company’s stock.

Antero Resources Company Profile

Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE: AR) is an independent oil and natural gas company engaged in the acquisition, development and production of unconventional resources. The company’s operations are focused primarily on the Appalachian Basin, where it produces natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil.

Antero’s asset base is concentrated in the Marcellus and Utica shale formations in West Virginia and Ohio. Its products include pipeline-quality natural gas as well as NGLs such as ethane, propane, butane and natural gasoline.