Truist Financial Corp Grows Stake in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Key Points

• Truist Financial increased its stake in Expand Energy by 235.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 15,324 shares valued at about $1.69 million.
• Expand Energy continues to draw heavy institutional interest, with 97.93% of the stock owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.83 versus estimates of $3.61 and revenue of $4.40 billion versus expectations of $3.53 billion, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus.

Truist Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE - Free Report) by 235.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,324 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,754 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp's holdings in Expand Energy were worth $1,691,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of EXE. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 350.9% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 248 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 890.0% during the fourth quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 297 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the period. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Expand Energy during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 54.5% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 414 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Expand Energy by 85.0% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 433 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on EXE shares. William Blair lowered shares of Expand Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Expand Energy from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Benchmark upped their target price on Expand Energy from $112.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 target price on Expand Energy in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $134.00 price objective (up from $133.00) on shares of Expand Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $132.09.

Expand Energy Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Expand Energy stock opened at $96.70 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $102.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Expand Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $91.01 and a 52-week high of $126.62. The company has a market cap of $23.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.21 and a beta of 0.36.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 predict that Expand Energy Corporation will post 8.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Expand Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Expand Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Expand Energy news, CFO Marcel Teunissen purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $96.43 per share, for a total transaction of $192,860.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 9,144 shares in the company, 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 this link. Also, CEO Michael Wichterich purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $107.50 per share, with a total value of $215,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 83,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,976,035. The trade was a 2.45% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Expand Energy Company 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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