Short Interest in Coterra Energy Inc. (NYSE:CTRA) Expands By 18.4%

Coterra Energy Inc. (NYSE:CTRA) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 20,540,000 shares, an increase of 18.4% from the December 15th total of 17,350,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,900,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Coterra Energy from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Coterra Energy from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Coterra Energy from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Coterra Energy from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Coterra Energy from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.76.

Coterra Energy Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of CTRA stock traded down $0.32 on Friday, hitting $29.51. The stock had a trading volume of 9,047,906 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,264,813. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.00. The company has a market cap of $21.74 billion, a PE ratio of 17.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.27. Coterra Energy has a one year low of $22.30 and a one year high of $29.95.

Coterra Energy (NYSE:CTRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. Coterra Energy had a return on equity of 9.38% and a net margin of 21.91%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Coterra Energy will post 1.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coterra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. Coterra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 16,435 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.76, for a total value of $439,800.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 72,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,937,664.84. The trade was a 18.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin William Smith sold 29,643 shares of Coterra Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.16, for a total transaction of $775,460.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 77,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,016,282. The trade was a 27.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coterra Energy

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Coterra Energy by 1.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,156,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $530,645,000 after purchasing an additional 305,626 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Coterra Energy by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 159,713 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,079,000 after purchasing an additional 9,115 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC bought a new position in Coterra Energy in the third quarter worth about $575,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Coterra Energy by 3.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,147,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,425,000 after acquiring an additional 64,753 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coterra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,267,000. 87.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Coterra Energy

Coterra Energy Inc, an independent oil and gas company, engages in the development, exploration, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. The company’s properties include the Marcellus Shale with approximately 186,000 net acres in the dry gas window of the play located in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania; Permian Basin properties with approximately 296,000 net acres located in west Texas and southeast New Mexico; and Anadarko Basin properties with approximately 182,000 net acres located in Oklahoma.