Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. Buys 5,306 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 42.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,907 shares of the energy company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,306 shares during the quarter. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $3,481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 140 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research raised shares of Cheniere Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $293.50.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of LNG stock opened at $243.71 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $263.70 and its 200-day moving average is $228.26. The stock has a market cap of $51.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.08 and a beta of 0.07. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $300.89.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 38.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 15.2 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.51%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,143,800. The trade was a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.