Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 150.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,693 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,429 shares during the quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $2,079,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted 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 worth $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $241.77 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $264.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $227.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.66 billion, a PE ratio of 39.76 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.57. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89.

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

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares in the company, valued at $26,143,800. This 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 insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LNG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $338.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $293.50.

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.