Versant Capital Management Inc Boosts Stock Position in Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC)

Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC) by 42.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,544 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Range Resources were worth $56,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of RRC. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Range Resources in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Range Resources by 107.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,359 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Range Resources during the third quarter worth $49,000. CWM LLC lifted its position in Range Resources by 276.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,306 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 1,694 shares during the period. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Range Resources in the third quarter valued at $92,000. 98.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Range Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RRC opened at $35.91 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.14 and a beta of 1.81. Range Resources Co. has a 52 week low of $27.29 and a 52 week high of $39.33. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.48 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 firm had revenue of $615.03 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $617.90 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Range Resources Co. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Range Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. Range Resources’s payout ratio is 16.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RRC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Range Resources from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Range Resources to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Range Resources from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Range Resources in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Range Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $35.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Range Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.32.

Insider Transactions at Range Resources

In other news, Director Charles G. Griffie purchased 1,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $31.46 per share, for a total transaction of $40,111.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $186,274.66. This trade represents a 27.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.57% of the company’s stock.

Range Resources 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.