Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Sold by Spirit of America Management Corp NY

Spirit of America Management Corp NY trimmed its position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 30,050 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 3,700 shares during the period. Cheniere Energy makes up approximately 1.2% of Spirit of America Management Corp NY’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Spirit of America Management Corp NY’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $5,841,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,007,073 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,411,542,000 after acquiring an additional 377,369 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 21.5% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,025,609 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $475,633,000 after acquiring an additional 359,123 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.5% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,845,285 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $449,364,000 after acquiring an additional 8,740 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,786,636 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $419,824,000 after acquiring an additional 95,545 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 2.8% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,776,978 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $417,554,000 after purchasing an additional 47,619 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on LNG. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $236.00 to $313.00 in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $266.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings raised Cheniere Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.00.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $293.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07 and a beta of 0.25. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $186.20 and a 52 week high of $300.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $236.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $220.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.90 by $6.78. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 26.68% and a return on equity of 32.04%. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.14%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to purchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.