Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 282,887 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 71.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 113,680 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 282,887 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $22,098,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LNG. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 7.3% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 688 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Quest Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 6.1% in the third quarter. Quest Investment Management LLC now owns 875 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.3% in the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Keel Point LLC lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 5.2% in the third quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 1,486 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on LNG shares. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Benchmark reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price 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. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LNG opened at $239.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $50.10 billion and a PE ratio of 39.32. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $253.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $230.67. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.57.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). The company had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The business’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.51%.

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

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In related news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,143,800. This trade represents a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy 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.