Chesapeake Energy shares surge

Chesapeake Energy Corp. shares jumped 27 percent Wednesday after a director said he bought $4 million in company stock and as the broader oil and financial markets surged.

Chesapeake stock dipped to a 52-week low of $1.71 a share before closing at $1.73 on Monday. The Oklahoma Citybased oil and natural gas producer rebounded sharply on the day after Christmas, gaining 46 cents, or 27 percent, to close at $2.19 a share on Wednesday.

Nearly 75.4 million shares changed hands, more than double the stock’s average volume.

The stock had an early boost Wednesday morning when the company announced that Director and former Chairman Archie Dunham bought 2.1 million Chesapeake shares on the open market for more than $4 million on Dec. 21. The purchase nearly doubled Dunham’s stake in the company, giving him control of more than 1 percent of the shares outstanding.

Wednesday’s gain also occurred as oil prices surged nearly 10 percent and as the Dow Jones industrial average gained almost 5 percent.

Domestic benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices tumbled 44 percent over the past three months, closing at $42.53 on Monday. The price rebounded 8.7 percent Wednesday to $46.22 a barrel.

Wednesday’s rally also led to double-digit percentage gains at three other Oklahoma oil companies. Laredo Petroleum Inc. added 61 cents, or 20 percent, to close at $3.65 a share. Tulsabased Unit Corp. added $1.55, or 12 percent, to $14.92. Tulsa’s WXP Energy Inc. gained $1.02, or 10 percent, to $11.12 a share.

In Oklahoma City, Continental Resources Inc. surged $3.32 a share, or 9.2 percent, to $39.52, while Gulfport Energy Corp. added 53 cents, or 8.4 percent, to close at $6.83 a share. Devon Energy Corp. gained $1.73, or 8.3 percent, to $22.71.