Contango ORE (NYSEAMERICAN:CTGO) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Contango ORE (NYSEAMERICAN:CTGO) to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Canaccord Genuity Group assumed coverage on Contango ORE in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Contango ORE has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.50.

Contango ORE Price Performance

Shares of CTGO stock opened at $21.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $21.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Contango ORE has a 12 month low of $16.37 and a 12 month high of $34.38. The company has a market capitalization of $359.95 million, a P/E ratio of -11.63 and a beta of -0.02.

Contango ORE (NYSEAMERICAN:CTGO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The company reported ($0.83) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.16 by ($0.99). As a group, equities analysts expect that Contango ORE will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Nieuwenhuyse Rick Van sold 21,621 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.92, for a total transaction of $387,448.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 517,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,267,148.80. This trade represents a 4.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Aaron Clark sold 10,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.92, for a total value of $180,544.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $713,180.16. This represents a 20.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 34,471 shares of company stock worth $617,720 in the last 90 days. 14.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Contango ORE

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CTGO. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in Contango ORE during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,772,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Contango ORE by 223.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 726,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,108,000 after purchasing an additional 501,641 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp acquired a new stake in Contango ORE during the 3rd quarter valued at $8,531,000. Glazer Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Contango ORE during the 4th quarter valued at $8,453,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Contango ORE by 1,908.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 207,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 197,492 shares in the last quarter. 19.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Contango ORE Company Profile

Contango ORE Royalty Trust (NYSE American: CTGO) is a grantor royalty trust that holds net overriding royalty interests in oil and gas properties. As a non?operating entity, the trust itself does not engage in exploration, drilling or production activities but instead receives a percentage of revenues generated by producing wells. This structure offers investors exposure to commodity price movements and production volumes without the direct capital expenditure or operational risks associated with upstream oil and gas companies.

The trust’s assets consist primarily of royalty interests in offshore leases located on the continental shelf of the Gulf of Mexico.