Chord Energy (NASDAQ:CHRD) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Chord Energy (NASDAQ:CHRD) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $168.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $114.00.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Mizuho set a $148.00 price target on shares of Chord Energy in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research raised Chord Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Chord Energy in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $169.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Chord Energy from $135.00 to $128.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Chord Energy from $158.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chord Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.92.

Chord Energy Stock Performance

CHRD opened at $145.35 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market cap of $8.24 billion, a PE ratio of 230.71 and a beta of 0.84. Chord Energy has a 1 year low of $79.83 and a 1 year high of $146.93.

Chord Energy (NASDAQ:CHRD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. Chord Energy had a return on equity of 6.71% and a net margin of 0.91%.Chord Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.49 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Chord Energy will post 15.59 EPS for the current year.

Chord Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 12th. Chord Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 825.40%.

Insider Activity at Chord Energy

In related news, EVP Michael H. Lou sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.47, for a total value of $1,882,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 82,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,376,243.53. This trade represents a 15.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Douglas E. Brooks sold 2,126 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.28, for a total transaction of $255,715.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,028,770.68. This trade represents a 7.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,927 shares of company stock worth $2,912,028. 0.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chord Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in shares of Chord Energy during the third quarter worth $91,434,000. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Chord Energy by 6,714.2% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 709,086 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,675,000 after acquiring an additional 698,680 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Chord Energy by 85.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,218,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,927,000 after acquiring an additional 561,899 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Chord Energy by 210.5% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 734,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,110,000 after purchasing an additional 497,789 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Chord Energy by 186.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 501,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,801,000 after purchasing an additional 326,054 shares during the last quarter. 97.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chord Energy Company Profile

Chord Energy Corporation (NASDAQ: CHRD), formerly known as Oasis Petroleum Inc, is an independent exploration and production company focused on the acquisition, development and production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Chord Energy emerged from financial restructuring in early 2021 and rebranded in October 2022 to reflect its renewed strategic vision.

The company’s core operations are concentrated in two prolific U.S. resource plays: the Williston Basin across North Dakota and Montana, and the Delaware Basin spanning parts of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico.