EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) Stock Crosses Above 50-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG) crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $149.54 and traded as high as $152.99. EOG Resources shares last traded at $151.6130, with a volume of 4,333,065 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EOG. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $151.00 price target (up from $127.00) on shares of EOG Resources in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Capital One Financial cut shares of EOG Resources from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $153.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of EOG Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Scotiabank began coverage on EOG Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $144.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded EOG Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.32.

EOG Resources Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $149.54 and a 200-day moving average of $138.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.53 billion, a PE ratio of 9.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.90.

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The energy exploration company reported $4.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.42. EOG Resources had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 27.54%. The company had revenue of $8.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 46.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that EOG Resources, Inc. will post 17.72 earnings per share for the current year.

EOG Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 29th. Investors of record on Friday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 15th. This is a positive change from EOG Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. EOG Resources’s payout ratio is 28.42%.

Insider Activity

In other EOG Resources news, EVP Michael Donaldson sold 7,336 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $1,085,728.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 100,558 shares in the company, valued at $14,882,584. The trade was a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey Leitzell sold 9,039 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.61, for a total transaction of $1,270,973.79. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 90,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,765,981.90. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 52,317 shares of company stock worth $7,823,480 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EOG Resources

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in EOG Resources by 469.4% during the third quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 205 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in EOG Resources in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Wedbush Fund Advisers LLC bought a new position in EOG Resources during the second quarter worth $31,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of EOG Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD bought a new stake in EOG Resources during the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 89.91% of the company’s stock.

About EOG Resources

EOG Resources is an independent energy company focused on exploring for, developing and producing crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its operations include drilling and managing wells, with a focus on resources in shale and other tight-rock formations. The company’s activities are concentrated in the United States, including major producing regions such as the Permian Basin and Eagle Ford. EOG also has international operations, including in Trinidad and Tobago and the United Arab Emirates.