Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Upgraded to Overweight by Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a research note released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $39.00 target price on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, up from their prior target price of $35.00.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on RRC. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Range Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Range Resources from $37.00 to $31.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Range Resources from $36.00 to $31.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Range Resources in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a peer perform rating for the company. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Range Resources in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Range Resources currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $35.50.

Range Resources Trading Up 4.3 %

NYSE RRC opened at $32.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.61 and a beta of 1.80. Range Resources has a 52-week low of $27.29 and a 52-week high of $39.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $30.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $641.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $610.24 million. Range Resources had a net margin of 17.62% and a return on equity of 13.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Range Resources will post 1.87 EPS for the current year.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Range Resources’s payout ratio is 16.24%.

Insider Activity at Range Resources

In related news, VP Ashley Kavanaugh sold 12,700 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.45, for a total transaction of $399,415.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,121.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Range Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Range Resources by 21.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,709 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Perkins Coie Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the 2nd quarter worth about $67,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the 2nd quarter worth about $67,000. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Range Resources by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,141 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the 2nd quarter worth about $107,000. Hedge funds and other 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.