Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Range Resources Co. (NYSE:RRC) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 143,261 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,155,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of RRC. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its position in shares of Range Resources by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 34,114 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,891 shares in the last quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Range Resources by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 144,959 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $5,216,000 after purchasing an additional 24,400 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Range Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $825,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Range Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE boosted its position in shares of Range Resources by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 79,037 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $2,844,000 after buying an additional 5,160 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.93% of the company’s stock.

Range Resources Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:RRC opened at $40.21 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company’s 50 day moving average is $38.48 and its 200-day moving average is $35.37. The firm has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.80. Range Resources Co. has a 12 month low of $27.29 and a 12 month high of $41.95.

Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.13. Range Resources had a net margin of 17.63% and a return on equity of 13.69%. The firm had revenue of $626.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $676.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Range Resources Co. will post 2.02 EPS for the current year.

Range Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This is an increase from Range Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. Range Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on RRC. Barclays set a $43.00 price objective on Range Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Range Resources from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Range Resources from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup lowered shares of Range Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Range Resources from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.60.

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.