Inspire Investing LLC Grows Position in Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK)

Inspire Investing LLC increased its position in Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) by 161.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 8,408 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,191 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Chesapeake Energy were worth $692,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. BOKF NA purchased a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the first quarter worth $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 895.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 677 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in Chesapeake Energy by 1,384.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 683 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.93% of the company’s stock.

Chesapeake Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CHK opened at $81.46 on Tuesday. Chesapeake Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $69.12 and a 12-month high of $93.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.98 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $75.01 and a 200 day moving average of $82.42.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $505.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $822.54 million. Chesapeake Energy had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 4.00%. The company’s revenue was down 73.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Energy Co. will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Chesapeake Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. Chesapeake Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CHK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $93.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Roth Capital raised Chesapeake Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Chesapeake Energy from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Chesapeake Energy from $108.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $111.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.92.

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.