Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and five have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $46.6250.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Antero Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Antero Resources from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on Antero Resources from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Antero Resources from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price target (down from $44.00) on shares of Antero Resources in a research report on Monday, December 8th.

Antero Resources Price Performance

AR stock opened at $45.11 on Friday. Antero Resources has a one year low of $29.10 and a one year high of $45.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $37.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.92 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

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

Insider Activity at Antero Resources

In other news, insider Yvette K. Schultz sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 319,122 shares in the company, valued at $12,551,068.26. The trade was a 4.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Benjamin A. Hardesty sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total transaction of $528,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 150,242 shares in the company, valued at $6,610,648. This trade represents a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,171,885 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $341,368,000 after purchasing an additional 116,461 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Antero Resources by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,085,648 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $313,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115,258 shares during the period. Sourcerock Group LLC grew its holdings in Antero Resources by 10.6% during the second quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 8,156,134 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $328,529,000 after purchasing an additional 783,117 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Antero Resources by 18.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,258,305 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock valued at $211,805,000 after purchasing an additional 817,977 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 35.4% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,364 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $161,768,000 after buying an additional 1,226,828 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.04% of the company’s stock.

Antero Resources Company Profile

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.