Ascent Group LLC Grows Stake in EOG Resources, Inc. $EOG

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC increased its holdings in EOG Resources, Inc. by 37.7%, acquiring an additional 6,679 shares to total 24,372 shares, valued at approximately $3.1 million.
• Other institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Charles Schwab, also increased their stakes in EOG Resources, leading to institutional ownership of 89.91% of the company.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic, with an average price target of $143.52 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for EOG Resources, despite varying price objectives from different firms.

Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG - Free Report) by 37.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,372 shares of the energy exploration company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,679 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in EOG Resources were worth $3,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in EOG Resources by 0.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,981,854 shares of the energy exploration company's stock valued at $6,922,633,000 after purchasing an additional 348,895 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of EOG Resources by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,380,866 shares of the energy exploration company's stock valued at $2,485,402,000 after buying an additional 1,188,552 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in EOG Resources by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,077,928 shares of the energy exploration company's stock valued at $779,433,000 after buying an additional 358,916 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in EOG Resources by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,909,297 shares of the energy exploration company's stock worth $757,808,000 after buying an additional 223,294 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in EOG Resources by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,530,260 shares of the energy exploration company's stock worth $709,201,000 after buying an additional 60,454 shares during the period. 89.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on EOG shares. Stephens started coverage on EOG Resources in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $137.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group increased their target price on EOG Resources from $142.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Argus downgraded shares of EOG Resources from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of EOG Resources in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $173.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Melius assumed coverage on shares of EOG Resources in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $173.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $143.52.

EOG Resources Stock Down 1.5%

NYSE:EOG traded down $1.80 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $118.20. 1,967,189 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,275,035. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market cap of $64.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.49, a PEG ratio of 9.19 and a beta of 0.85. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $119.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $118.10. EOG Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $102.52 and a one year high of $138.18.

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The energy exploration company reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $5.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.45 billion. EOG Resources had a net margin of 25.25% and a return on equity of 20.51%. The business's revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.16 EPS. Equities analysts predict that EOG Resources, Inc. will post 11.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other EOG Resources news, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 3,951 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.65, for a total value of $472,737.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 45,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,472,671.35. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

EOG Resources Profile

EOG Resources, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily in producing basins in the United States, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and internationally. The company was formerly known as Enron Oil & Gas Company.