Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Sells 31,937 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 50.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 31,226 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 31,937 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $6,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LNG. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,219,557 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $4,124,870,000 after acquiring an additional 414,022 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,007,073 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,411,542,000 after acquiring an additional 377,369 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,025,609 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $475,633,000 after purchasing an additional 359,123 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.6% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,786,636 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $419,824,000 after purchasing an additional 95,545 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.8% in 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 during the period. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cheniere Energy news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:LNG opened at $239.45 on Thursday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $264.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $227.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.18 billion, a PE ratio of 39.38 and a beta of 0.07.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The energy company reported ($16.65) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.25 by ($20.90). The business had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 15.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to reacquire up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $293.50.

About Cheniere Energy

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.