StockNews.com Upgrades EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) to Buy

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup increased their target price on EOG Resources from $127.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of EOG Resources in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of EOG Resources from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $147.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of EOG Resources from $156.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of EOG Resources in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.86.

EOG Resources Price Performance

NYSE:EOG opened at $133.91 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $75.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 1.29. EOG Resources has a 12-month low of $108.94 and a 12-month high of $139.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company’s 50-day moving average is $129.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.27.

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The energy exploration company reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by $0.16. EOG Resources had a net margin of 29.18% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The firm had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.44 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that EOG Resources will post 11.45 EPS for the current year.

EOG Resources declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy exploration company to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 4,000 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.89, for a total value of $483,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 42,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,162,365.67. This trade represents a 8.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Janet F. Clark sold 568 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.33, for a total value of $76,867.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 43,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,891,185.56. This trade represents a 1.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EOG Resources

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Insight Inv LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EOG Resources by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 9,385 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock valued at $1,154,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Cape ANN Savings Bank lifted its holdings in EOG Resources by 0.9% in the third quarter. Cape ANN Savings Bank now owns 8,679 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in EOG Resources by 3.6% in the third quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 2,380 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in EOG Resources by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 2,921 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock valued at $358,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of EOG Resources by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 928 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.91% of the company’s stock.

EOG Resources Company Profile

EOG Resources, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily in producing basins in the United States, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and internationally. The company was formerly known as Enron Oil & Gas Company.