As the Q4 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the upstream natural gas E&P industry, including Range Resources (NYSE: RRC) and its peers.

Natural gas-focused E&P companies explore, develop, and produce natural gas resources serving power generation, industrial, and export markets. Natural gas is often positioned as a transition fuel given lower carbon intensity versus coal and oil. Tailwinds include growing LNG (liquefied natural gas) export demand, power generation switching from coal, and industrial consumption growth. Headwinds include natural gas price volatility driven by weather, storage levels, and competing supply sources. Infrastructure constraints may limit market access, while long-term demand faces uncertainty from renewable energy expansion and electrification trends potentially reducing gas consumption.

The 6 upstream natural gas E&P stocks we track reported a strong Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.6%.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady. On average, they are relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.

Range Resources (NYSE: RRC)

Focused almost entirely on the Marcellus Shale beneath Pennsylvania's forests and farmland, Range Resources (NYSE: RRC) drills for and produces natural gas, natural gas liquids, and oil from shale formations.

Range Resources reported revenues of $769.1 million, up 8.6% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 5.4%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Dennis Degner, the Company’s CEO, commented, “Our results for 2025 demonstrate the strength of Range’s business as we successfully generated free cash flow, returned capital to shareholders and reduced net debt while thoughtfully investing in the business to deliver current results and enhance future optionality. Over the last three years, Range has made prudent strategic investments to build productive capacity that supports the efficient and market-oriented production growth plan we have been communicating since last year. Importantly, Range’s incremental production through 2027 is tied to additional contracted takeaway and diverse global and domestic end markets, including a portion being sold at margin-enhancing premiums to support new Midwest power demand."

Interestingly, the stock is up 10.8% since reporting and currently trades at $42.70.

Is now the time to buy Range Resources? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q4: CNX Resources (NYSE: CNX)

Tracing back to operations that began in 1860, CNX Resources (NYSE: CNX) drills for and produces natural gas from underground shale formations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia.

CNX Resources reported revenues of $450 million, up 8.9% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 5.1%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 7.1% since reporting. It currently trades at $39.32.

Is now the time to buy CNX Resources? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Antero Resources (NYSE: AR)

Holding roughly 521,000 net acres across West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, Antero Resources (NYSE: AR) drills and produces natural gas, natural gas liquids, and oil from underground rock formations in the Appalachian Basin.

Antero Resources reported revenues of $1.29 billion, up 11.8% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. Still, it was a softer quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 5.7% since the results and currently trades at $37.11.

Read our full analysis of Antero Resources’s results here.

Comstock Resources (NYSE: CRK)

Operating in the Haynesville shale where a single well can produce millions of cubic feet of gas daily, Comstock Resources (NYSE: CRK) drills for and produces natural gas from underground shale rock formations in Louisiana and Texas.

Comstock Resources reported revenues of $361.8 million, up 5.9% year on year. This print came in 21.9% below analysts' expectations. Overall, it was a slower quarter as it also logged a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Comstock Resources had the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 14.2% since reporting and currently trades at $17.51.

Read our full, actionable report on Comstock Resources here, it’s free.

EQT (NYSE: EQT)

The largest natural gas producer in the United States by daily volume, EQT (NYSE: EQT) produces natural gas and natural gas liquids from wells drilled in the Appalachian Basin.

EQT reported revenues of $2.09 billion, up 15% year on year. This number lagged analysts' expectations by 1.1%. Aside from that, it was a strong quarter as it logged a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is flat since reporting and currently trades at $57.69.

Read our full, actionable report on EQT here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

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