Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Hits New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $31.00 to $35.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Range Resources traded as high as $39.43 and last traded at $39.38, with a volume of 593998 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.49.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on RRC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Range Resources from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays raised Range Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $35.00 to $34.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stephens increased their price objective on Range Resources from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised Range Resources to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Range Resources from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.16.

Insider Activity at Range Resources

In related news, Director Charles G. Griffie purchased 1,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $31.46 per share, with a total value of $40,111.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $186,274.66. This trade represents a 27.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Range Resources

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RRC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Range Resources by 61.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,579,579 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $48,588,000 after buying an additional 604,199 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Range Resources in the third quarter worth $11,508,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 4.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,017,704 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $62,065,000 after purchasing an additional 92,217 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 135.5% during the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 112,008 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $3,445,000 after purchasing an additional 64,443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 59.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 131,571 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $4,045,000 after purchasing an additional 49,276 shares in the last quarter. 98.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Range Resources Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.38 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $35.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.42.

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

Range Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.16%.

Range Resources Company Profile

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.