RPC (NYSE:RES) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

RPC, Inc. (NYSE:RES - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $6.29, but opened at $6.06. RPC shares last traded at $6.03, with a volume of 193,705 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on RES shares. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of RPC from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on RPC from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on RPC from $6.75 to $5.25 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th.

RPC Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $6.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.61. The firm has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.55 and a beta of 1.55.

RPC (NYSE:RES - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.02. RPC had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 11.52%. The firm had revenue of $364.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $381.18 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. RPC's quarterly revenue was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that RPC, Inc. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RPC Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. RPC's payout ratio is currently 29.09%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in RPC by 3.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 51,819 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 1,869 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank raised its position in RPC by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 192,000 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,486,000 after purchasing an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in RPC by 17.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 24,393 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $189,000 after purchasing an additional 3,650 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in RPC by 256.5% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,112 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3,678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in RPC by 540.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,560 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,848 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.06% of the company's stock.

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.