RPC (NYSE:RES) Shares Down 4.1% – Should You Sell?

RPC, Inc. (NYSE:RES)’s stock price dropped 4.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $5.05 and last traded at $5.08. Approximately 121,619 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 1,487,561 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Citigroup raised their target price on RPC from $5.25 to $5.50 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th.

RPC Stock Down 3.1 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 1.58.

RPC (NYSE:RES) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.06. RPC had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 6.46%. Analysts expect that RPC, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

RPC Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.04 per share. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. RPC’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.21%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RPC

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RES. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of RPC by 230.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 182,943 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,163,000 after purchasing an additional 127,525 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of RPC during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,917,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in RPC by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 489,401 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,113,000 after buying an additional 71,064 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in RPC by 540.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,560 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 3,848 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in RPC by 7.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,509,478 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,600,000 after buying an additional 106,108 shares in the last quarter. 41.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RPC Company Profile

RPC, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages provision of a range of oilfield services and equipment for the oil and gas companies involved in the exploration, production, and development of oil and gas properties. The company operates through Technical Services and Support Services segments. The Technical Services segment offers pressure pumping, fracturing, acidizing, cementing, downhole tools, coiled tubing, snubbing, nitrogen, well control, wireline, pump down, and fishing services that are used in the completion, production, and maintenance of oil and gas wells.