Geode Capital Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Antero Resources Corporation $AR

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management reduced its Antero Resources stake by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 133,945 shares and leaving it with 5.34 million shares worth about $184.2 million.
• Insider selling continued, including director Benjamin A. Hardesty and insider Michael N. Kennedy, with total insider sales of 252,316 shares worth nearly $10 million over the last quarter.
• Analysts remain mostly positive on AR: the stock has a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $50.06, even after one recent downgrade from Weiss Ratings.

Geode Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,344,559 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after selling 133,945 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.73% of Antero Resources worth $184,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AR. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Antero Resources during the third quarter worth $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Antero Resources by 167.8% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,824 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Antero Resources by 100.1% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 2,487 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Antero Resources during the fourth quarter worth $99,000. 83.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Antero Resources

In other Antero Resources news, Director Benjamin A. Hardesty sold 12,000 shares of Antero Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total value of $528,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 150,242 shares in the company, valued at $6,610,648. The trade was a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael N. Kennedy sold 185,826 shares of Antero Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.33, for a total value of $7,308,536.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,085,192 shares in the company, valued at $42,680,601.36. This trade represents a 14.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 252,316 shares of company stock worth $9,977,259 over the last quarter. Insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Antero Resources Stock Performance

AR stock opened at $36.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $38.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.42. The company has a market capitalization of $11.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.87 and a beta of 0.33. Antero Resources Corporation has a 1-year low of $29.10 and a 1-year high of $45.75.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AR shares. Mizuho lifted their target price on Antero Resources from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Antero Resources from $39.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Antero Resources from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on Antero Resources from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Antero Resources from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Antero Resources presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.06.

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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