Why Southwestern Energy Company (SWN) Rallied Today

After being range-bound between $7 and $8 per share due to a fairly disastrous fourth quarter earnings report, Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN) shares have bounced back. Courtesy of today’s 3.5% rally, shares of the natural gas producer are now trading above the $8 mark. Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN) received a bid today due to rising natural gas futures, which as of 2 PM are up around 2%. In terms of the commodity, bulls hope that President Trump will loosen regulations enough so that the U.S. can profitably sell its excess natural gas overseas. Investors also hope that the weather plays ball over the coming months and further stimulates energy demand.

Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN)’s relative strength in the face of the recent news that it will be replaced by Computer Sciences in the S&P 500 beginning April 4 is certainly encouraging.

What Does The Smart Money Sentiment Say?

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The smart money was more optimistic on Southwestern Energy in the fourth quarter than in the third quarter. According to our data, 44 elite funds had a bullish position in Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN) at the end of December, up 7 funds from the previous quarter. Those numbers are out of the 742 elite funds that we track in total. In terms of individual fund movements, Cliff Asness’ AQR Capital Management raised its holdings by 724% to 7.5 million shares, while Dan Loeb‘s Third Point initiated a new stake of 5 million shares.

The Bottom Line

Southwestern Energy Company (NYSE:SWN) shares are rising due to improved sentiment in the natural gas sector. With natural gas futures now comfortably above $3 and rising, more investors believe Southwestern Energy can beat expectations going forward. For those of you interested, check out this article on the world’s largest natural gas producers.

Disclosure:None

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