Sanders Morris Harris LLC Invests $618,000 in Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE)

Sanders Morris Harris LLC bought a new stake in Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 5,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $618,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rhumbline Advisers purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $43,592,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $36,507,000. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $466,000. Doliver Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $446,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $286,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.93% of the company's stock.

Chesapeake Energy Stock Performance

EXE traded down $0.23 on Thursday, hitting $115.97. 658,657 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,395,074. The company has a 50 day moving average of $109.06 and a 200-day moving average of $104.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.60 billion, a PE ratio of 71.59 and a beta of 0.49. Chesapeake Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $81.66 and a 12-month high of $120.04.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.10 billion. Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 2.74% and a net margin of 6.07%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Energy Corporation will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Chesapeake Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently -42.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on EXE. KeyCorp upgraded Chesapeake Energy from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Benchmark upped their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $93.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Stephens cut their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $123.00 to $118.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Chesapeake Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $116.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chesapeake Energy has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $126.79.

About Chesapeake 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.