Bank of America Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Stock

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) had its target price increased by Bank of America from $254.00 to $258.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the energy company's stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on LNG. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $243.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Argus began coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $255.00 target price for the company. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $251.46.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

NYSE LNG traded up $5.45 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $235.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,707,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,867,048. The business has a 50 day moving average of $223.37 and a 200-day moving average of $217.91. The company has a market cap of $52.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.58 and a beta of 0.67. Cheniere Energy has a 1-year low of $153.03 and a 1-year 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.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $1.59. The firm had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.44 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 20.71%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy will post 11.69 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is currently 14.05%.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.51, for a total transaction of $1,975,590.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 33,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,448,852.34. The trade was a 20.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cheniere Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 170.5% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 119 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 373.1% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 150.0% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.