StockNews.com Upgrades EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) to “Buy”

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised EOG Resources from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $147.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of EOG Resources from $144.00 to $137.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of EOG Resources in a report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $144.00 price objective (down previously from $151.00) on shares of EOG Resources in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of EOG Resources in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.86.

EOG Resources Trading Down 0.1 %

EOG Resources stock opened at $133.91 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $129.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $127.27. EOG Resources has a 52-week low of $108.94 and a 52-week high of $139.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The energy exploration company reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $5.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. EOG Resources had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 29.18%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that EOG Resources will post 11.45 earnings per share for the current year.

EOG Resources announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, November 7th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the energy exploration company to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.89, for a total value of $483,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 42,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,162,365.67. The trade was a 8.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Janet F. Clark sold 568 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.33, for a total transaction of $76,867.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,532 shares in the company, valued at $5,891,185.56. The trade was a 1.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EOG Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of EOG Resources in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in EOG Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of EOG Resources during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of EOG Resources in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. grew its stake in shares of EOG Resources by 203.7% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 328 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. 89.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

EOG Resources Company Profile

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.