Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $52.80 and last traded at $53.0570, with a volume of 1,918,724 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.52.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on RRC. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Range Resources in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Range Resources from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Range Resources from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Range Resources from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Range Resources from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Range Resources presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.22.

Range Resources Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $12.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.75 and its 200 day moving average is $39.99.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Reginal Spiller sold 3,500 shares of Range Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $140,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $536,840. The trade was a 20.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 38,392 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $1,422,000 after buying an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. Gibbs Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Range Resources by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Gibbs Wealth Management now owns 12,571 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Lmcg Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Range Resources by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 170,120 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $6,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Finally, Hosking Partners LLP grew its position in Range Resources by 17.7% during the third quarter. Hosking Partners LLP now owns 144,803 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $5,364,000 after buying an additional 21,825 shares in the last quarter. 98.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Range Resources Company Profile

Range Resources Corporation is an independent natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil exploration and production company. Its operations are concentrated in the Appalachian Basin, particularly the Marcellus Shale in southwestern Pennsylvania, where the company develops unconventional wells and produces natural gas, condensate and natural gas liquids.

The company’s activities include leasing and developing mineral properties, drilling and completing horizontal wells, and producing and marketing hydrocarbons.