Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $104.73.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Benchmark decreased their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $107.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Chesapeake Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Chesapeake Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $82.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, January 12th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th.

Chesapeake Energy Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of CHK stock opened at $92.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.16. Chesapeake Energy has a 1 year low of $72.84 and a 1 year high of $92.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.99.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $962.95 million. Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 6.74% and a net margin of 27.74%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.22 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Energy will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Chesapeake Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chesapeake Energy

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

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.