Cheniere Energy, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.56 (NYSE:LNG)

Key Points

• Cheniere declared a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, payable May 19 to holders of record on May 11 (ex-dividend date May 11), equivalent to a $2.22 annualized payout and a ~0.8% yield.
• The dividend appears well supported: the current payout ratio is 56.8%, and analysts project next‑year EPS of $15.52 implying an expected future payout ratio of about 14.3%.
• Operationally Cheniere reported a big earnings beat (Q EPS $10.68 vs. $3.90 est., revenue up 22.9% YoY), the stock trades around $265 with a $55.7B market cap, and several analysts have raised price targets (consensus ~ $295.56, with some targets up to $330).

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of 0.555 per share by the energy company on Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th.

Cheniere Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 56.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Cheniere Energy to earn $15.52 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.22 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 14.3%.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

LNG stock traded up $5.81 on Tuesday, reaching $265.21. The company had a trading volume of 2,538,017 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,746,553. Cheniere Energy has a 1 year low of $186.20 and a 1 year high of $300.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company's fifty day moving average is $258.71 and its 200 day moving average is $225.00. The company has a market cap of $55.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.91 and a beta of 0.14.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.90 by $6.78. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.33 EPS. Cheniere Energy's revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy will post 13.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on LNG shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wolfe Research set a $220.00 price target on Cheniere Energy and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Barclays increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Citigroup increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $285.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $295.56.

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.

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