Wedbush Securities Inc. Boosts Stake in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE) by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,398 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Expand Energy were worth $280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of EXE. Harbour Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Expand Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Expand Energy during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Expand Energy in the first quarter worth $28,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in Expand Energy in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in Expand Energy during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Expand Energy Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of EXE opened at $118.63 on Thursday. Expand Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $91.01 and a 1 year high of $123.35. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $106.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $28.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.68 and a beta of 0.47.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. Expand Energy had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 6.31%. On average, equities analysts expect that Expand Energy Corporation will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expand Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 13th. Expand Energy’s payout ratio is currently 65.34%.

Insider Activity at Expand Energy

In other news, CEO Domenic J. Dell’osso, Jr. acquired 2,500 shares of Expand Energy stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $95.86 per share, for a total transaction of $239,650.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 166,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,981,299.90. This trade represents a 1.52% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Joshua J. Viets acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $92.16 per share, for a total transaction of $184,320.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 61,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,684,060.16. This represents a 3.35% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $135.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $141.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $127.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Expand Energy from $140.00 to $136.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Expand Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.24.

About Expand Energy

Expand Energy Corporation is an independent natural gas producer principally in the United States. Expand Energy Corporation, formerly known as Chesapeake Energy Corporation, is based in OKLAHOMA CITY.