Cheniere Energy Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:LNG)

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock traders purchased 15,303 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 79% compared to the average volume of 8,527 call options.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 0.7%

LNG stock opened at $265.05 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $241.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $238.40. Cheniere Energy has a 52 week low of $186.20 and a 52 week high of $300.89. The company has a market cap of $55.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.59 and a beta of -0.01.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Institutional Trading of Cheniere Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LNG. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,219,557 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $4,124,870,000 after buying an additional 414,022 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,174,695 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,200,299,000 after acquiring an additional 167,622 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $731,774,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,279,078 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $443,031,000 after acquiring an additional 253,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,263,826 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $440,047,000 after acquiring an additional 134,695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

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.