Ameriprise Financial Inc. Sells 21,920 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 220,225 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 21,920 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 0.10% of Cheniere Energy worth $47,324,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,127,000. Fractal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Fractal Investments LLC now owns 59,200 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $12,720,000 after acquiring an additional 14,000 shares in the last quarter. Anderson Hoagland & Co. acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,460,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,664 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $7,812,000 after acquiring an additional 8,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $245,000. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 1.6%

LNG opened at $233.48 on Monday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $153.03 and a fifty-two week high of $257.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average of $224.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $220.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41 and a beta of 0.41.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.81 by ($1.24). Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 37.19%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $243.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Argus initiated coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $255.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $252.23.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.51, for a total transaction of $1,975,590.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,448,852.34. The trade was a 20.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

About Cheniere Energy

Cheniere Energy, Inc, an energy infrastructure company, primarily engages in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) related businesses in the United States. It owns and operates the Sabine Pass LNG terminal in Cameron Parish, Louisiana; and the Corpus Christi LNG terminal near Corpus Christi, Texas. The company also owns Creole Trail pipeline, a 94-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal with several interstate and intrastate pipelines; and operates Corpus Christi pipeline, a 21.5-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Corpus Christi LNG terminal with various interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines.

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