Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) PT Raised to $117.00 at Stephens

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

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Benchmark reduced 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 note on Tuesday, April 9th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Chesapeake Energy from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the company from $82.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, January 12th. UBS Group raised their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Chesapeake Energy from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One 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, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $105.83.

Chesapeake Energy Trading Down 0.1 %

CHK stock opened at $86.67 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $86.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.99. 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 capitalization of $11.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.51.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.08). Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 4.87% and a net margin of 16.42%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $674.99 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.87 EPS. Analysts expect that Chesapeake Energy will post 1.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Energy Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 90.8% during the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 374 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Chesapeake Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Chesapeake Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.93% of the company’s stock.

About Chesapeake Energy

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.