Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Sells 89,495 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board cut its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,952,278 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 89,495 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.87% of Cheniere Energy worth $419,486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $2,127,000. Fractal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 14,000 shares during the last quarter. Anderson Hoagland & Co. bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,460,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,664 shares of the energy company's stock worth $7,812,000 after purchasing an additional 8,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Insight Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,455,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LNG traded up $9.98 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $233.32. 1,090,947 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,332,577. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $153.03 and a 52 week high of $257.65. The company's 50 day moving average price is $220.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.55.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $1.59. The firm had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 37.19%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is 14.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LNG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Cheniere Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $245.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,448,852.34. This represents a 20.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% 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.