Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) Shares Down 0.4%

Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) was down 0.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $89.89 and last traded at $90.32. Approximately 221,039 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,021,451 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CHK shares. TheStreet lowered shares of Chesapeake Energy from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Friday, December 29th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Chesapeake Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Benchmark decreased their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $107.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.73.

Chesapeake Energy Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $12.04 billion, a PE ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company’s 50 day moving average is $85.90 and its 200-day moving average is $82.16.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $962.95 million. Chesapeake Energy had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 6.74%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Chesapeake Energy Co. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a $0.575 dividend. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. Chesapeake Energy’s payout ratio is currently 13.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chesapeake Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,852,961 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,108,311,000 after buying an additional 257,880 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,317,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,221,000 after buying an additional 213,235 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,235,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,029,000 after buying an additional 427,181 shares during the period. Kimmeridge Energy Management Company LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. Kimmeridge Energy Management Company LLC now owns 3,153,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $271,959,000 after buying an additional 439,186 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 2,723,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,844,000 after buying an additional 426,560 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.93% of the company’s stock.

Chesapeake Energy Company Profile

Chesapeake Energy Corporation operates as an independent exploration and production company in the United States. It engages in acquisition, exploration, and development of properties to produce oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids from underground reservoirs. The company holds interests in natural gas resource plays in the Marcellus Shale in the northern Appalachian Basin in Pennsylvania and the Haynesville/Bossier Shales in northwestern Louisiana.