Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $34.79, but opened at $35.92. Range Resources shares last traded at $35.85, with a volume of 322,250 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Range Resources from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Range Resources from $36.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup upped their price target on Range Resources from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Range Resources from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Range Resources from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Range Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.00.

Range Resources Stock Up 5.2 %

The company has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.48 and a beta of 1.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $33.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.19.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $615.03 million during 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Range Resources Co. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.16%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Charles G. Griffie acquired 1,275 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $31.46 per share, for a total transaction of $40,111.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. M&T Bank Corp grew its stake 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 worth $332,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Range Resources by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,801 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $386,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Finally, Orser Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Range Resources by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Orser Capital Management LLC now owns 53,993 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,661,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.93% of the company’s stock.

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.