Expand Energy Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:EXE)

Key Points

• Expand Energy saw unusually heavy put options activity on Monday, with 11,912 puts traded — about 54% above its typical daily volume — suggesting elevated bearish hedging or speculation.
• The stock slipped 1.6% to $89.24 and traded below both its 50-day moving average ($93.22) and 200-day moving average ($101.33). Despite the recent weakness, the company is still profitable, with a low debt-to-equity ratio and a market cap of $21.35 billion.
• Recent fundamentals and shareholder activity were mixed but generally supportive: the company beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, pays a 2.6% dividend yield, and saw insider buying from both the CFO and CEO. Analyst sentiment remains cautiously positive overall, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $132.47.

Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 11,912 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 54% compared to the typical daily volume of 7,713 put options.

Expand Energy Trading Down 1.6%

EXE traded down $1.48 during trading on Monday, hitting $89.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 724,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,680,328. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $93.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $21.35 billion, a PE ratio of 6.67 and a beta of 0.34. Expand Energy has a twelve month low of $86.37 and a twelve month high of $126.62.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.53 billion. Expand Energy had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 22.53%. On average, analysts expect that Expand Energy will post 8.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Expand Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Expand Energy's dividend payout ratio is 17.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Marcel Teunissen acquired 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $96.43 per share, with a total value of $192,860.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,144 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $881,755.92. This trade represents a 28.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Wichterich acquired 1,000 shares of Expand Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $88.90 per share, with a total value of $88,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 85,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,600,772.20. The trade was a 1.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders purchased 4,000 shares of company stock worth $375,120. Insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Expand Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH lifted its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 1,383 shares of the company's stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its holdings in Expand Energy by 1.0% in the third quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 9,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its position in Expand Energy by 74.6% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 234 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Expand Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,073 shares of the company's stock worth $2,657,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Expand Energy by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 543 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. 97.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EXE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Expand Energy from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $134.00 target price (up from $133.00) on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays cut shares of Expand Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Expand Energy from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Expand Energy from $139.00 to $131.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Expand Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $132.47.

Expand 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.