Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) Downgraded to “Strong Sell” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) from a sell rating to a strong sell rating in a research report released on Saturday.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on CRK. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Comstock Resources in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America downgraded Comstock Resources from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $27.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Friday, January 16th. UBS Group set a $17.00 price objective on Comstock Resources in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $19.00 price objective on Comstock Resources in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $20.88.

Comstock Resources Stock Performance

NYSE CRK opened at $14.13 on Friday. Comstock Resources has a 1-year low of $14.10 and a 1-year high of $31.17. The company has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.45 and a beta of 0.22. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $19.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.41 and a quick ratio of 0.49.

Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.08). Comstock Resources had a net margin of 27.18% and a return on equity of 5.54%. The firm had revenue of $587.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $554.02 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Comstock Resources will post 0.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Patrick Mcgough sold 48,915 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.20, for a total transaction of $1,036,998.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 187,516 shares in the company, valued at $3,975,339.20. This trade represents a 20.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRK. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Comstock Resources in the first quarter valued at $627,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Comstock Resources by 5.1% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 55,236 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,124,000 after acquiring an additional 2,697 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Comstock Resources by 67.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,086,868 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $22,107,000 after acquiring an additional 437,476 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Comstock Resources by 26.0% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 65,289 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,328,000 after acquiring an additional 13,485 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in Comstock Resources in the second quarter valued at $93,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.13% of the company’s stock.

Comstock Resources Company Profile

Comstock Resources, Inc is an independent energy company engaged in the acquisition, exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. The company focuses on generating long-term value through the efficient development of unconventional resource plays and conventional prospects. Its activities encompass drilling, completion and production operations, as well as the marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids and crude oil.

Comstock holds a core position in the Haynesville Shale of Northwest Louisiana, one of the most active natural gas plays in North America, and has built a complementary portfolio in the Delaware Basin of West Texas.