BlackRock Inc. Makes New Investment in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 19.5 million shares of Expand Energy in the second quarter, worth approximately $1.78 billion and representing an 8.42% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 97.93% of the company.
• Expand Energy exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.33 versus the $1.13 consensus estimate, although revenue of $2.96 billion fell short of estimates. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.575 per share, implying a 2.4% annualized yield.
• EXE shares opened at $96.03, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $127.67, despite several recent target-price reductions.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 19,497,795 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,778,004,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 8.42% of Expand Energy at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its holdings in Expand Energy by 74.6% in 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 in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 350.9% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 248 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in shares of Expand Energy by 379.6% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 259 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in Expand Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 97.93% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael Wichterich purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $88.90 per share, with a total value of $88,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 85,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,600,772.20. This trade represents a 1.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Expand Energy Price Performance

Shares of Expand Energy stock opened at $96.03 on Thursday. Expand Energy Corporation has a one year low of $84.99 and a one year high of $126.62. The stock's fifty day moving average is $90.60 and its 200 day moving average is $97.70. The stock has a market cap of $22.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.29 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.20. Expand Energy had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 20.46%.The business had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Expand Energy Corporation will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Expand Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Expand Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $114.00 price target on shares of Expand Energy in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Benchmark lowered their target price on Expand Energy from $124.00 to $109.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Expand Energy from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Expand Energy from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Johnson Rice cut shares of Expand Energy from a "buy" rating to an "accumulate" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $127.67.

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.

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