Candriam S.C.A. Boosts Stock Holdings in Expand Energy Corporation $EXE

Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE) by 28.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,294 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,724 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Expand Energy were worth $3,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EXE. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its holdings in Expand Energy by 74.6% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 350.9% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 379.6% during the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 259 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Expand Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Expand Energy in the first quarter worth about $32,000. 97.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on EXE shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Expand Energy from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Expand Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Expand Energy from $134.00 to $117.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Expand Energy in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Expand Energy from $139.00 to $131.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Expand Energy news, CFO Marcel Teunissen bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $96.43 per share, for a total transaction of $192,860.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,144 shares in the company, valued at $881,755.92. The trade was a 28.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Wichterich purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $88.90 per share, for a total transaction of $88,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 85,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,600,772.20. This trade represents a 1.18% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 4,000 shares of company stock worth $375,120. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Expand Energy Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:EXE opened at $87.10 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business’s 50 day moving average is $92.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.49. Expand Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $84.99 and a 52 week high of $126.62. The company has a market cap of $20.84 billion, a PE ratio of 6.50 and a beta of 0.34.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.22. Expand Energy had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The firm had revenue of $4.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. On average, analysts predict that Expand Energy Corporation will post 8.52 EPS for the current year.

Expand Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $0.575 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $2.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Expand Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.15%.

Expand Energy Profile

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.