Stephens Raises Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) Price Target to $117.00

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) had its price target upped by Stephens from $116.00 to $117.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

CHK has been the topic of several other reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Mizuho restated a buy rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Chesapeake Energy currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $105.83.

Chesapeake Energy Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of CHK stock opened at $86.67 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $86.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Chesapeake Energy has a fifty-two week low of $72.84 and a fifty-two week high of $93.58. The stock has a market cap of $11.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.51.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $674.99 million. Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 4.87% and a net margin of 16.42%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.87 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Energy will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be issued a $0.715 dividend. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This is a boost from Chesapeake Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Chesapeake Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chesapeake Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Easterly Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Chesapeake Energy by 90.3% in the 1st quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 48,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,293,000 after buying an additional 22,925 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 57.8% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 6,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 2,531 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 1.3% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 200,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,773,000 after acquiring an additional 2,531 shares in the last quarter. Hartree Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 20.3% during the first quarter. Hartree Partners LP now owns 190,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,878,000 after acquiring an additional 32,000 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Chesapeake Energy by 6.7% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 7,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $669,000 after purchasing an additional 470 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.