Keeley Teton Advisors LLC Takes Position in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Key Points

• Keeley Teton Advisors LLC invested approximately $3.10 million in Expand Energy Corporation, purchasing 27,805 shares in the first quarter.
• Analysts show mixed ratings for Expand Energy, with Morgan Stanley raising their target price to $139.00 and Sanford C. Bernstein upgrading to a "strong-buy" rating.
• Expand Energy announced a quarterly dividend of $0.575 per share, resulting in a yield of 2.4%, with a payout ratio currently at 589.74%.

Keeley Teton Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 27,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,095,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbour Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Expand Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Expand Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Expand Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the first quarter worth $31,000. 97.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EXE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Siebert Williams Shank lowered their target price on Expand Energy from $142.00 to $128.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. KeyCorp set a $135.00 price target on shares of Expand Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $150.00 to $148.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Bernstein Bank dropped their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $150.00 to $146.00 in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $121.00 to $120.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Expand Energy currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.42.

Expand Energy Price Performance

Shares of EXE traded up $1.94 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $97.24. 2,303,623 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,292,811. The company has a market cap of $23.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 249.34 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company's 50-day moving average price is $103.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.68. Expand Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $69.12 and a 52-week high of $123.35.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.04). Expand Energy had a net margin of 2.41% and a return on equity of 5.76%. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Expand Energy Corporation will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Expand Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Expand Energy's payout ratio is currently 589.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Domenic J. Dell'osso, Jr. acquired 2,500 shares of Expand Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $95.86 per share, for a total transaction of $239,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 166,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,981,299.90. This represents a 1.52% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Joshua J. Viets bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $92.16 per share, for a total transaction of $184,320.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 61,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,684,060.16. This represents a 3.35% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.