Ramaco Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:METC) Director Peter A. Leidel Sells 1,600,000 Shares

Key Points

• Peter A. Leidel, the Director of Ramaco Resources, sold 1,600,000 shares at an average price of $18.75, resulting in a total transaction value of $30 million, reducing his ownership stake by 39%.
• Ramaco Resources reported a loss of $0.29 earnings per share, missing estimates, despite a revenue of $152.96 million for the quarter, which was higher than analyst expectations.
• The company is also facing challenges, having recently cut its dividend to $0.0688 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of only 1.2%.

Ramaco Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ:METC - Get Free Report) Director Peter A. Leidel sold 1,600,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total value of $30,000,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,502,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,929,937.50. This represents a 39.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Ramaco Resources Stock Up 4.2%

Ramaco Resources stock traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $23.49. 3,732,176 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,349,339. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.20 and a beta of 1.35. Ramaco Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $6.30 and a 1-year high of $24.75. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $15.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.50.

Ramaco Resources (NASDAQ:METC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The energy company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $152.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $131.55 million. Ramaco Resources had a negative net margin of 3.17% and a negative return on equity of 5.55%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.08 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ramaco Resources, Inc. will post 0.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ramaco Resources Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.0688 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Ramaco Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -62.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ramaco Resources

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in METC. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in Ramaco Resources by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 12,872 shares of the energy company's stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 2,760 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Ramaco Resources by 59.4% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 69,763 shares of the energy company's stock worth $574,000 after purchasing an additional 25,992 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Ramaco Resources by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 41,656 shares of the energy company's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP lifted its stake in Ramaco Resources by 151.0% during the first quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 1,678,594 shares of the energy company's stock worth $13,815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,009,782 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ramaco Resources by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 16,189 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 1,970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.49% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on METC shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Ramaco Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $24.00 target price (up previously from $14.00) on shares of Ramaco Resources in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $27.00 target price (up previously from $15.00) on shares of Ramaco Resources in a report on Wednesday, July 16th.

Ramaco Resources Company Profile

Ramaco Resources, Inc engages in the development, operation, and sale of metallurgical coal. Its development portfolio includes the Elk Creek project that covers an area of approximately 20,200 acres located in southern West Virginia; the Berwind property covering an area of approximately 62,500 acres situated on the border of West Virginia and Virginia; the Knox Creek property, which covers an area of approximately 64,050 acres is located in Virginia; the Maben property covering an area of approximately 28,000 acres situated in southwestern Pennsylvania southern West Virginia; and the Brook Mine property that covers an area of approximately 16,000 acres located in northeastern Wyoming.

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