Mariner Investment Group LLC Takes Position in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Key Points

• Mariner Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Expand Energy Corporation, purchasing 7,500 shares valued at approximately $877,000, making it the firm's 28th largest holding.
• A significant 97.93% of Expand Energy's stock is owned by institutional investors, with notable stakes from Vanguard Group, Price T Rowe Associates, and others totaling billions.
• Expand Energy announced a quarterly dividend of $0.575 per share, representing a dividend yield of 2.2%, despite a high payout ratio of 589.74%.

Mariner Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 7,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $877,000. Expand Energy makes up 0.3% of Mariner Investment Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,973,033,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,310,932,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $701,831,000. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $624,083,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $518,328,000. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Expand Energy

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on EXE shares. Wolfe Research lowered their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $150.00 to $148.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $134.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $122.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $150.00 target price (up from $146.00) on shares of Expand Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Expand Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.46.

Expand Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:EXE opened at $105.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market cap of $25.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 271.21 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $98.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.08. Expand Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $80.72 and a 1-year high of $123.35.

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

Expand Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. Expand Energy's payout ratio is 589.74%.

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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