Brokerages Set Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE) PT at $125.33

Shares of Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Buy" from the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $126.63.

Several research firms have issued reports on EXE. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Chesapeake Energy in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $135.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $131.00 to $129.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $93.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. TD Cowen raised Chesapeake Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded Chesapeake Energy from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Domenic J. Dell'osso, Jr. acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $99.50 per share, for a total transaction of $248,750.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,730,577.50. The trade was a 2.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Chesapeake Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EXE. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the first quarter worth $217,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $79,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Chesapeake Energy by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 28,770 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,203,000 after buying an additional 948 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth bought a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $205,000. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chesapeake Energy Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:EXE traded down $0.32 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $114.39. The company had a trading volume of 3,273,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,459,498. Chesapeake Energy has a 1-year low of $81.66 and a 1-year high of $116.46. The stock has a market cap of $27.22 billion, a PE ratio of 70.61 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business's 50 day moving average price is $107.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $102.66.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 2.74% and a net margin of 6.07%. Research analysts forecast that Chesapeake Energy will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Chesapeake Energy's dividend payout ratio is -42.91%.

Chesapeake Energy Company Profile

Expand Energy Corporation is an independent natural gas producer principally in the United States. Expand Energy Corporation, formerly known as Chesapeake Energy Corporation, is based in OKLAHOMA CITY.