HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Makes New $3.65 Million Investment in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Key Points

• HITE Hedge Asset Management opened a new position in Expand Energy, buying 33,056 shares valued at about $3.65 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership of EXE remains very high at 97.93%, with several large investors recently increasing their stakes, including Capital Research Global Investors and Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management.
• Expand Energy has received a mostly bullish Wall Street outlook, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $131.45; the stock also beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates and pays a 2.6% dividend yield.

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 33,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,648,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EXE. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 161.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,959,335 shares of the company's stock worth $1,695,520,000 after buying an additional 9,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 36,574.9% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,420,912 shares of the company's stock worth $267,172,000 after buying an additional 2,414,311 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 862.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,256,987 shares of the company's stock worth $133,542,000 after buying an additional 1,126,363 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in shares of Expand Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $115,504,000. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,183,560 shares of the company's stock worth $1,400,621,000 after buying an additional 1,014,484 shares in the last quarter. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on EXE shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $141.00 price target on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $134.00 target price (up from $133.00) on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group increased their target price on Expand Energy from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Expand Energy from $141.00 to $139.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 target price on Expand Energy in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $131.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Marcel Teunissen purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $96.43 per share, with a total value of $192,860.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 9,144 shares of the company's stock, valued at $881,755.92. This represents a 28.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Wichterich purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $93.36 per share, with a total value of $93,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 84,498 shares in the company, valued at $7,888,733.28. The trade was a 1.20% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Expand Energy Price Performance

Shares of EXE opened at $88.78 on Friday. Expand Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $86.80 and a 12-month high of $126.62. The business's fifty day moving average is $96.23 and its 200 day moving average is $104.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $21.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.62 and a beta of 0.33.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.22. Expand Energy had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 22.53%.The company had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.53 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Expand Energy Corporation will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expand Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a $0.575 dividend. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. Expand Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.15%.

About Expand Energy

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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