Short Interest in Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE) Declines By 17.8%

Expand Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:EXE) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 5,990,844 shares, a decrease of 17.8% from the February 12th total of 7,285,730 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,631,999 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,631,999 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.3 days. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Expand Energy Price Performance

Shares of Expand Energy stock traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $107.71. The company had a trading volume of 3,954,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,768,769. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.14. Expand Energy has a 1-year low of $91.01 and a 1-year high of $126.62. The company has a market capitalization of $25.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.29 and a beta of 0.47.

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The company reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. Expand Energy had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 15.00%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Expand Energy will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Expand Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.575 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $2.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Expand Energy’s payout ratio is presently 30.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expand Energy

In other news, CEO Michael Wichterich acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $107.50 per share, with a total value of $215,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 83,498 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,976,035. This represents a 2.45% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Expand Energy

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXE. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Expand Energy by 161.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,959,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,695,520,000 after purchasing an additional 9,856,576 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 36,574.9% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,420,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,172,000 after purchasing an additional 2,414,311 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Expand Energy by 192.0% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,286,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $362,683,000 after purchasing an additional 2,160,979 shares during the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Expand Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $169,783,000. Finally, Dragoneer Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Expand Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $145,633,000. Institutional investors own 97.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on EXE. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on Expand Energy from $145.00 to $144.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $141.00 price objective on shares of Expand Energy in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays increased their target price on Expand Energy from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group lowered their target price on Expand Energy from $150.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Expand Energy from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $131.26.

Expand Energy Company 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.