Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) PT Lowered to $85.00 at UBS Group

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) had its price target reduced by UBS Group from $93.00 to $85.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $111.00 to $105.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Chesapeake Energy to a sell rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Chesapeake Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Chesapeake Energy has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $105.92.

Chesapeake Energy Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ CHK opened at $78.46 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a market cap of $10.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.57 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.72. Chesapeake Energy has a 12-month low of $69.12 and a 12-month high of $93.58.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.01). Chesapeake Energy had a return on equity of 4.00% and a net margin of 8.68%. The company had revenue of $505.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $822.54 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. Chesapeake Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 73.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Chesapeake Energy will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Chesapeake Energy’s payout ratio is currently 31.00%.

Institutional Trading of Chesapeake Energy

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CHK. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $37,000. BOKF NA bought a new stake in Chesapeake Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 569 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. 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.