29,800 Shares in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Bought by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems bought 29,800 shares of Cheniere Energy worth approximately $7.1 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 87.26% of the company.
• Cheniere reported quarterly EPS of $3.02, below the $3.11 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 23.5% year over year to $5.73 billion. The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, or $2.22 annualized.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $304.35 price target versus the stock’s reported $276.13 opening price.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 29,800 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $7,122,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Corp raised its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.7% in the first quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 517 shares of the energy company's stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 1,497 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $425,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 725 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 54.5% in the 1st quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 136 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 3,318 shares of the energy company's stock worth $942,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Trading Down 5.4%

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock opened at $276.13 on Wednesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $267.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $256.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.03 billion and a PE ratio of 20.56.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported $3.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.11 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $5.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.92 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 13.57% and a return on equity of 29.80%. Cheniere Energy's revenue was up 23.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 16.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LNG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cheniere Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research downgraded Cheniere Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Cheniere Energy from $327.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $304.35.

Cheniere Energy Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a Houston-based energy company focused on the production, liquefaction, transportation and export of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The company purchases natural gas and processes it at its liquefaction facilities before shipping LNG to customers in international markets. Cheniere also provides natural gas pipeline, storage and other services that support its LNG operations.

Cheniere operates the Sabine Pass LNG facility in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and the Corpus Christi LNG facility in South Texas.

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