Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 14.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,000,319 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 687,069 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $939,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 134.1% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 103 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 473.7% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the second quarter worth $30,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $262.00 to $259.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $290.00 price objective on Cheniere Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $274.00 to $271.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $266.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $265.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director W Benjamin Moreland bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $208.22 per share, with a total value of $1,041,100.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 9,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,052,216.32. This trade represents a 102.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $206.45 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $257.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $200.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.22. The firm has a market cap of $44.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.64 and a beta of 0.26.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The energy company reported $4.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.75 by $2.00. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 21.12%.The company had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.93 EPS. Cheniere Energy’s revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 18th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. This is an increase from Cheniere Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.37%.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S.-based energy company that develops, owns and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and markets LNG to global customers. The company’s core activities include natural gas liquefaction, long‑term and short‑term LNG sales and marketing, and the associated midstream services required to move gas from production basins to international markets. Cheniere focuses on converting domestic natural gas into LNG for export, providing a bridge between North American supply and overseas demand.

Cheniere’s principal operating assets are large-scale LNG export terminals located on the U.S.