Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Shares Gap Down on Insider Selling

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Monday following insider selling activity. The stock had previously closed at $243.09, but opened at $236.48. Cheniere Energy shares last traded at $229.71, with a volume of 663,406 shares trading hands.

Specifically, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.93, for a total transaction of $1,057,499.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 29,733 shares in the company, valued at $7,312,236.69. This trade represents a 12.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $254.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $277.00 target price on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $252.23.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $52.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.50 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $230.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.01. 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 (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is 14.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 373.1% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 150.0% in the 4th 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 period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

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.