Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) Price Target Raised to $55.00

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) had its target price raised by Raymond James from $46.00 to $55.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Stephens upped their price target on Range Resources from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Williams Trading set a $40.00 target price on Range Resources in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Range Resources from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Range Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Range Resources from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Range Resources presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.60.

Range Resources Stock Performance

Shares of RRC opened at $40.67 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.54, a P/E/G ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.54. Range Resources has a 52 week low of $27.29 and a 52 week high of $41.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $35.41.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $626.42 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $676.53 million. Range Resources had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 17.63%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Range Resources will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Range Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. This is a positive change from Range Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Range Resources

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Range Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $33,684,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Range Resources by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,094 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,756 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in Range Resources by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 8,046 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 1,293 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Range Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,645,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Range Resources during the 4th quarter worth $3,001,000. 98.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Range Resources

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.