River Road Asset Management LLC Sells 46,589 Shares of Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK)

River Road Asset Management LLC cut its position in Chesapeake Energy Co. (NASDAQ:CHK) by 18.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 212,065 shares of the company’s stock after selling 46,589 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Chesapeake Energy were worth $16,316,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CHK. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 478.3% in the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 347 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 132.1% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 362 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Chesapeake Energy in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Chesapeake Energy during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Chesapeake Energy by 292.0% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. 97.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chesapeake Energy Price Performance

Shares of CHK opened at $87.15 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $84.20 and its 200 day moving average is $81.91. Chesapeake Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $72.84 and a 12-month high of $91.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market cap of $11.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.52.

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:CHK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.89. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.95 million. Chesapeake Energy had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 6.74%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.22 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Chesapeake Energy Co. will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chesapeake Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.575 per share. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Chesapeake Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on CHK. Citigroup raised shares of Chesapeake Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $82.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, January 12th. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $107.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Chesapeake Energy from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Chesapeake Energy from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Chesapeake Energy from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.58.

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.