Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 348,895 Shares of EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in EOG Resources by 0.7%, acquiring an additional 348,895 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 53.98 million shares valued at nearly $6.92 billion.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.02 per share, up from $0.98, which will be paid on October 31st, indicating a 3.5% dividend yield.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on EOG shares, with 12 hold ratings and nine buy ratings, reflecting a consensus average target price of approximately $140.62.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 53,981,854 shares of the energy exploration company's stock after acquiring an additional 348,895 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.89% of EOG Resources worth $6,922,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of EOG Resources during the first quarter valued at $1,822,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in EOG Resources by 6.1% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,049 shares of the energy exploration company's stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in EOG Resources by 22.4% during the first quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 431,546 shares of the energy exploration company's stock worth $55,341,000 after buying an additional 78,944 shares during the last quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC bought a new position in EOG Resources during the first quarter worth $487,000. Finally, Earned Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in EOG Resources during the first quarter worth $209,000. Institutional investors own 89.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on EOG shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $148.00 target price (up previously from $144.00) on shares of EOG Resources in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $135.00 target price on shares of EOG Resources and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Roth Capital downgraded shares of EOG Resources from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Scotiabank raised shares of EOG Resources from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of EOG Resources from $125.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.62.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 3,951 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.65, for a total transaction of $472,737.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 45,739 shares in the company, valued at $5,472,671.35. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

EOG Resources Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE EOG opened at $116.68 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.82, a P/E/G ratio of 9.02 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $119.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.23. EOG Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $102.52 and a 1 year high of $138.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.71.

EOG Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.02 per share. This is an increase from EOG Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.98. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 17th. EOG Resources's dividend payout ratio is 36.18%.

About EOG Resources

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.

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