Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) Shares Down 4.1% on Insider Selling

Shares of Comstock Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CRK) traded down 4.1% on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $17.77 and last traded at $17.93. 885,487 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average session volume of 1,383,275 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.70.

Specifically, Director Elizabeth B. Davis sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.17, for a total transaction of $145,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 99,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,810,313.44. This represents a 7.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CRK shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Comstock Resources from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Siebert Williams Shank lowered Comstock Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $9.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Mizuho upgraded Comstock Resources from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $10.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Comstock Resources in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Comstock Resources from $12.50 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.78.

Comstock Resources Trading Down 5.5 %

The company has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -98.22 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $15.03 and its 200-day moving average is $12.15.

Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.01). Comstock Resources had a negative net margin of 4.93% and a negative return on equity of 3.88%. The business had revenue of $304.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.75 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Comstock Resources, Inc. will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Comstock Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royce & Associates LP increased its position in Comstock Resources by 79.2% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 689,780 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,677,000 after acquiring an additional 304,780 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Comstock Resources by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,413,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $15,736,000 after purchasing an additional 57,376 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Comstock Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $419,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Comstock Resources by 256.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 155,614 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 111,934 shares during the period. Finally, Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Comstock Resources by 27.8% in the second quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC now owns 683,570 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,095,000 after buying an additional 148,700 shares during the last quarter. 36.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Comstock Resources

Comstock Resources, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of natural gas and oil properties in the United States. Its assets are located in the Haynesville and Bossier shales located in North Louisiana and East Texas. The company was incorporated in 1919 and is headquartered in Frisco, Texas.