Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Antero Resources Co. (NYSE:AR)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company downgraded the stock from an overweight rating to an underweight rating. The stock had previously closed at $28.65, but opened at $27.92. Wells Fargo & Company now has a $25.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $34.00. Antero Resources shares last traded at $28.43, with a volume of 232,194 shares changing hands.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Antero Resources from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Antero Resources from $37.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Antero Resources from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank upgraded Antero Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on Antero Resources from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Yvette K. Schultz sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.24, for a total value of $1,262,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 248,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,268,682.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Antero Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AR. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 1,311.8% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 960 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 892 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Antero Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Antero Resources during the second quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in Antero Resources by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 3,384 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Antero Resources by 382.1% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 3,375 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 2,675 shares in the last quarter. 83.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Antero Resources Trading Up 2.0 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $9.08 billion, a PE ratio of 146.10 and a beta of 3.33. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and natural gas company reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.20) by ($0.04). Antero Resources had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 0.45%. The business had revenue of $978.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $980.20 million. Equities analysts expect that Antero Resources Co. will post 0.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Antero Resources

Antero Resources Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas company, engages in the development, production, exploration, and acquisition of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and oil properties in the United States. It operates in three segments: Exploration and Development; Marketing; and Equity Method Investment in Antero Midstream.