Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Nineteen firms rate Antero Resources an average of "Moderate Buy" (6 holds, 8 buys, 5 strong buys) with a 1-year average target of $48.56, and several brokers recently raised targets (Truist $56, Wells Fargo $52, Citigroup $53).
• Insider selling: Insider Yvette K. Schultz sold 15,000 shares at $39.33 and Director Benjamin A. Hardesty sold 12,000 shares at $44, reducing their stakes; insiders now own 6.30% of the company.
• Recent results and metrics: Q4 earnings beat estimates with EPS $0.62 vs. $0.49 and revenue $1.41B (up 20.8% YoY); the company has a market cap of $11.48B, a PE of 18.43 and a low debt-to-equity of 0.18.

Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nineteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and five have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $48.5625.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AR. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Antero Resources from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their price target on Antero Resources from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $50.00 price target on Antero Resources in a report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup increased their price target on Antero Resources from $39.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Antero Resources in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $56.00 price target for the company.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Antero Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AR. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 16,498.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 9,627 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $389,000 after acquiring an additional 9,569 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 7.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 590,555 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $23,882,000 after acquiring an additional 43,312 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 18.9% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 19,921 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $806,000 after acquiring an additional 3,169 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 701.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,989 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $120,000 after acquiring an additional 2,616 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Antero Resources by 22.5% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 36,500 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $1,470,000 after acquiring an additional 6,700 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.04% of the company's stock.

Antero Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AR opened at $37.23 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $38.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.47. Antero Resources has a 1-year low of $29.10 and a 1-year high of $45.75. The company has a market cap of $11.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.43 and a beta of 0.42.

Antero Resources (NYSE:AR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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. Antero Resources had a return on equity of 6.71% and a net margin of 12.02%.The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Antero Resources will post 3.79 EPS for the current year.

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.

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