Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) Stock Price Down 4.1% After Insider Selling

Shares of Comstock Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CRK) were down 4.1% on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $17.77 and last traded at $17.93. Approximately 885,487 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average daily volume of 1,383,275 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.70.

Specifically, Director Elizabeth B. Davis sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.17, for a total value of $145,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 99,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,810,313.44. This represents a 7.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial raised their target price on Comstock Resources from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Comstock Resources from $12.50 to $15.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Siebert Williams Shank downgraded shares of Comstock Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $9.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Comstock Resources in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Comstock Resources from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $10.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.78.

Comstock Resources Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of -99.05 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $14.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by ($0.01). Comstock Resources had a negative net margin of 4.93% and a negative return on equity of 3.88%. The firm had revenue of $304.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Comstock Resources, Inc. will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Comstock Resources

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Comstock Resources by 79.2% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 689,780 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,677,000 after purchasing an additional 304,780 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Comstock Resources by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,413,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $15,736,000 after purchasing an additional 57,376 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Comstock Resources in the third quarter valued at about $419,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in Comstock Resources by 256.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 155,614 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,731,000 after buying an additional 111,934 shares during the period. Finally, Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Comstock Resources by 27.8% during the 2nd quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC now owns 683,570 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,095,000 after acquiring an additional 148,700 shares during the period. 36.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Comstock Resources

Comstock Resources, Inc, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of natural gas and oil properties in the United States. Its assets are located in the Haynesville and Bossier shales located in North Louisiana and East Texas. The company was incorporated in 1919 and is headquartered in Frisco, Texas.