Antero Resources Co. (NYSE:AR) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Antero Resources Co. (NYSE:AR) was the target of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 14,730,000 shares, a growth of 54.9% from the February 28th total of 9,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,700,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 5.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Antero Resources news, Director W Howard Keenan, Jr. sold 200,000 shares of Antero Resources stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.76, for a total value of $7,952,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,800,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,568,000. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Antero Resources

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AR. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Antero Resources during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Antero Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in Antero Resources in the 4th quarter worth $3,112,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in Antero Resources by 53.7% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 161,912 shares of the oil and natural gas company’s stock worth $5,675,000 after purchasing an additional 56,561 shares during the period. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in Antero Resources during the 4th quarter worth about $81,000. Institutional investors own 83.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Antero Resources from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Antero Resources from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Antero Resources in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Antero Resources from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on Antero Resources from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Antero Resources presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.24.

Antero Resources Trading Up 2.0 %

AR traded up $0.81 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $40.50. The stock had a trading volume of 4,109,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,993,757. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 126.55 and a beta of 3.38. Antero Resources has a 1-year low of $24.53 and a 1-year high of $42.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The oil and natural gas company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.14. Antero Resources had a return on equity of 0.74% and a net margin of 2.31%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Antero Resources will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Antero Resources

Antero Resources Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas company, engages in the development, production, exploration, and acquisition of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and oil properties in the United States. It operates in three segments: Exploration and Development; Marketing; and Equity Method Investment in Antero Midstream.