EOG Resources Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:EOG)

EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 39,002 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 803% compared to the typical volume of 4,321 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on EOG. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $144.00 target price (down previously from $151.00) on shares of EOG Resources in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of EOG Resources from $127.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of EOG Resources from $156.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of EOG Resources from $156.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on EOG Resources from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.48.

EOG Resources Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:EOG opened at $136.70 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $76.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. EOG Resources has a 12-month low of $108.94 and a 12-month high of $139.67.

EOG Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $0.975 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $3.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. This is an increase from EOG Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. EOG Resources’s payout ratio is presently 29.31%.

EOG Resources declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the energy exploration company to reacquire up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Janet F. Clark sold 568 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now directly owns 43,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,891,185.56. The trade was a 1.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.89, for a total value of $483,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 42,703 shares in the company, valued at $5,162,365.67. This trade represents a 8.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EOG Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. New Century Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of EOG Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $216,000. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in EOG Resources by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,152 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $999,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC increased its stake in EOG Resources by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC now owns 145,262 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock valued at $17,806,000 after purchasing an additional 8,945 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of EOG Resources by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 10,443 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $1,280,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its position in shares of EOG Resources by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 103,795 shares of the energy exploration company’s stock worth $12,723,000 after buying an additional 38,642 shares during the last quarter. 89.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About EOG Resources

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.