Expand Energy Corporation $EXE Shares Purchased by Jennison Associates LLC

Key Points

• Jennison Associates boosted its stake in Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) by 82.1% in Q4, acquiring 402,618 shares to hold 892,935 shares (~$98.54M), and institutional investors now own 97.93% of the company.
• Q1 beats and strong cash generation: EXE reported revenue of $4.40B and EPS of $3.83, and generated roughly $1.7B of adjusted free cash flow that funded about $1.3B of debt redemption and cut annual interest expense by over $80M.
• Returns and analyst sentiment: The company declared a $0.575 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~2.3%), and analysts have an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a mean target price of $132.09.

Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) by 82.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 892,935 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 402,618 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.37% of Expand Energy worth $98,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 6.8% during the third quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 1,383 shares of the company's stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 3.3% during the third quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 3,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 1.0% during the third quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 9,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,041,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,073 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 5.2% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,184 shares of the company's stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EXE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, February 19th. KeyCorp restated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 price objective on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Expand Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $132.09.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael Wichterich bought 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $107.50 per share, for a total transaction of $215,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 83,498 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,976,035. This represents a 2.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Expand Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Expand Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — EXE reported upside to consensus on both revenue and EPS (revenue of $4.40B and EPS $3.83), which investors view as a clear operational beat. MSN: Expand Energy reports strong Q1
• Positive Sentiment: Huge free cash flow and debt reduction — management said Q1 generated roughly $1.7B adjusted FCF, enabling ~ $1.3B of debt redemption and lowering annual interest expense by >$80M, improving financial flexibility. Seeking Alpha: Excellent Q1 free cash flow
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term LNG contract supports forward demand — coverage highlights a 20‑year LNG deal and related commercial wins that underpin the bull case for more stable long-term cash flows. Yahoo: The Bull Case For Expand Energy
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared — EXE announced a $0.575 per‑share quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~2.3%), signaling confidence in cash generation and returning capital to shareholders.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst reaffirmation and higher price target — Truist (reported via Benzinga) reconfirmed a “buy” and nudged its target to $134, implying meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga: Truist reiterates buy
• Positive Sentiment: Earnings call emphasized cash and LNG growth — management commentary reinforced the free‑cash‑flow focus and commercial LNG momentum, supporting the upbeat market reaction. TipRanks: Earnings call highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Full transcripts and presentations are available for deeper review — read the Q1 earnings transcript and the investor presentation for line‑by‑line details if you need to model forward cash flows. Yahoo: Q1 2026 earnings transcript Seeking Alpha: Q1 presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Commodity‑price sensitivity — some of Q1’s strength was aided by a temporary winter gas price spike; NYMEX strip expectations are lower for the rest of the year, which could temper but not eliminate projected FCF. Seeking Alpha: Winter storm impact

Expand Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EXE opened at $102.15 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $103.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.44. The firm has a market cap of $24.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.62 and a beta of 0.47. Expand Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $91.01 and a 52 week high of $126.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. Expand Energy had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 22.53%. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a $0.575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Expand Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.15%.

Expand Energy 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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