Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) Hits New 1-Year High at $92.78

Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $92.78 and last traded at $92.61, with a volume of 72016 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $92.06.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $107.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, KeyCorp assumed coverage on Chesapeake Energy in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.73.

Chesapeake Energy Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.99. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $85.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.52.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for 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 prior year, the firm earned $4.22 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Chesapeake Energy Co. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. Chesapeake Energy’s payout ratio is 13.66%.

Institutional Trading of Chesapeake Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 90.8% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 374 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Chesapeake Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Chesapeake Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.