Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $44.79 and last traded at $44.6540, with a volume of 7638545 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.37.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AR has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Antero Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Antero Resources from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Antero Resources in a report on Monday, December 29th. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Antero Resources in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Antero Resources from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.63.

Antero Resources Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.11 and a beta of 0.52.

Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The oil and natural gas company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.13. Antero Resources had a return on equity of 6.71% and a net margin of 12.02%.The business had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Antero Resources Corporation will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Antero Resources

In related news, Director Benjamin A. Hardesty sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $528,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 150,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,610,648. The trade was a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Yvette K. Schultz sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.33, for a total transaction of $589,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 319,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,551,068.26. The trade was a 4.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Antero Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AR. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Antero Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in Antero Resources during the third quarter worth about $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 59.2% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 928 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Antero Resources by 114.2% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 938 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Antero Resources in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. 83.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Antero Resources

Antero Resources Corporation is an independent exploration and production company focused on the development of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and oil properties in the Appalachian Basin of the United States. The company’s operations target the Marcellus and Utica shales, where it applies advanced drilling and completion techniques to optimize recovery from its large acreage position. Antero’s portfolio encompasses significant reserves of ethane, propane and other NGLs, alongside dry gas volumes that are positioned to serve both domestic and export markets.

Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Antero Resources holds approximately 1.8 million net acres of leasehold interests across parts of West Virginia and Ohio.