Brokerages Set Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) PT at $106.67

Shares of Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $105.92.

A number of analysts have recently commented on CHK shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $93.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $111.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp began coverage on Chesapeake Energy in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chesapeake Energy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Chesapeake Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 60,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,729,000 after acquiring an additional 4,922 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 112.6% during the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 39,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,037,000 after acquiring an additional 20,910 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in Chesapeake Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,050,000. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance raised its position in Chesapeake Energy by 33.0% during the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 10,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $836,000 after purchasing an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.93% of the company’s stock.

Chesapeake Energy Trading Up 2.8 %

NASDAQ CHK opened at $76.57 on Tuesday. Chesapeake Energy has a one year low of $69.12 and a one year high of $93.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The firm has a market cap of $10.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $74.85 and its 200-day moving average is $82.79.

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

Chesapeake Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.575 dividend. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Chesapeake Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.00%.

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.