Bailard Inc. Raises Stake in Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD)

Bailard Inc. increased its position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,684 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Pioneer Natural Resources were worth $3,077,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 21,079 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock valued at $4,839,000 after purchasing an additional 6,589 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Pioneer Natural Resources by 610.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 618,449 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock worth $141,965,000 after purchasing an additional 531,418 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. grew its stake in Pioneer Natural Resources by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 51,608 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock valued at $11,847,000 after acquiring an additional 3,438 shares in the last quarter. SCP Investment LP lifted its position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources by 80.0% during the 3rd quarter. SCP Investment LP now owns 1,800 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources by 34.2% in the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 440,522 shares of the oil and gas development company’s stock valued at $101,122,000 after purchasing an additional 112,261 shares in the last quarter. 80.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pioneer Natural Resources Trading Up 0.5 %

PXD traded up $1.29 during trading on Thursday, hitting $276.81. 839,912 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,980,202. Pioneer Natural Resources has a 1 year low of $196.74 and a 1 year high of $278.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market cap of $64.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $253.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $239.42.

Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas development company reported $5.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.41 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.28 billion. Pioneer Natural Resources had a net margin of 25.28% and a return on equity of 22.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Pioneer Natural Resources will post 22.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pioneer Natural Resources Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $2.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $10.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. Pioneer Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.70%.

Insider Activity at Pioneer Natural Resources

In other Pioneer Natural Resources news, EVP Mark H. Kleinman sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.35, for a total value of $820,225.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 49,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,683,753.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Scott D. Sheffield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.25, for a total value of $2,352,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 462,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $108,711,848. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Mark H. Kleinman sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.35, for a total transaction of $820,225.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 49,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,683,753.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 36,766 shares of company stock valued at $9,067,373. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PXD shares. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Pioneer Natural Resources from $246.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Pioneer Natural Resources in a research note on Sunday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $279.00 price target on shares of Pioneer Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Pioneer Natural Resources from $276.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Pioneer Natural Resources from $230.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $264.10.

Pioneer Natural Resources Profile

Pioneer Natural Resources Company operates as an independent oil and gas exploration and production company in the United States. The company explores for, develops, and produces oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and gas. It has operations in the Midland Basin in West Texas. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Irving, Texas.