William Blair Investment Management LLC Acquires 125,136 Shares of Antero Resources Corporation $AR

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management increased its stake in Antero Resources by 25% in the fourth quarter, buying 125,136 shares and bringing its total holdings to 626,420 shares valued at about $21.6 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with several other hedge funds also adding to their positions in AR; institutions now own 83.04% of the company.
• Analysts are broadly positive on Antero Resources, with a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $49.63, even as insiders recently sold shares.

William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR - Free Report) by 25.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 626,420 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock after buying an additional 125,136 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned 0.20% of Antero Resources worth $21,586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,171,885 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $341,368,000 after buying an additional 116,461 shares during the last quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 10.6% during the second quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 8,156,134 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $328,529,000 after buying an additional 783,117 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 31.8% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,970,390 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $267,485,000 after buying an additional 1,922,977 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 3.2% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 4,508,542 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $151,307,000 after buying an additional 140,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Antero Resources by 111.2% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,988,300 shares of the oil and natural gas company's stock valued at $137,437,000 after buying an additional 2,099,755 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.04% of the company's stock.

Antero Resources Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE AR opened at $36.79 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.31. Antero Resources Corporation has a 52-week low of $29.10 and a 52-week high of $45.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on AR. TD Cowen raised Antero Resources to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Roth Mkm reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of Antero Resources in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Benchmark upgraded Antero Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Antero Resources in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Antero Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Michael N. Kennedy sold 185,826 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company's stock, valued at $42,680,601.36. The trade was a 14.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Yvette K. Schultz sold 39,490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.27, for a total value of $1,550,772.30. Following the sale, the insider owned 277,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,903,904.55. This represents a 12.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 252,316 shares of company stock valued at $9,977,259 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Antero Resources 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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