Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,830,000 shares, an increase of 26.2% from the October 15th total of 11,750,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,080,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.1 days. Approximately 6.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity at Range Resources

In other Range Resources news, VP Ashley Kavanaugh sold 12,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.45, for a total transaction of $399,415.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 9,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,121.50. The trade was a 56.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles G. Griffie purchased 1,275 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $31.46 per share, with a total value of $40,111.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $186,274.66. This represents a 27.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Range Resources

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Range Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Range Resources by 107.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,359 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Range Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $49,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Range Resources by 21.2% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,709 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co purchased a new stake in Range Resources during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $67,000. Institutional investors own 98.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RRC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Range Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays upgraded Range Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $35.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Range Resources from $37.00 to $31.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of Range Resources in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Range Resources from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Range Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.00.

Range Resources Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of RRC stock opened at $33.44 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $8.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.89 and a beta of 1.80. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $30.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.60. Range Resources has a 1 year low of $27.29 and a 1 year high of $39.33.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.16. Range Resources had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 17.63%. The company had revenue of $615.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $617.90 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.43 earnings per share. Range Resources’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Range Resources will post 1.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. Range Resources’s payout ratio is 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.