Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Increases Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 51.0%, now owning 5,142 shares valued at approximately $1.19 million as of the latest SEC disclosure.
• Cheniere Energy reported a significant earnings beat for the last quarter, with an EPS of $7.30 and revenues of $4.64 billion, surpassing analyst expectations.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, reflecting an annualized payout of $2.00 and a yield of 0.8%.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 51.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,142 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 1,736 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $1,190,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 27.6% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,304,253 shares of the energy company's stock worth $301,804,000 after acquiring an additional 282,050 shares during the period. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the first quarter worth about $529,000. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.6% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 1,494,901 shares of the energy company's stock worth $345,920,000 after acquiring an additional 105,875 shares during the period. Fractal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 27.7% during the first quarter. Fractal Investments LLC now owns 75,585 shares of the energy company's stock worth $17,490,000 after acquiring an additional 16,385 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.5% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 23,505 shares of the energy company's stock worth $5,439,000 after acquiring an additional 1,630 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 2.4%

LNG stock opened at $235.8180 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $51.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.77 and a beta of 0.43. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.14 and a 52 week high of $257.65. The company's 50-day moving average price is $234.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $228.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The energy company reported $7.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.35 by $4.95. The firm had revenue of $4.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.48 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 21.05% and a return on equity of 37.83%. The firm's revenue was up 42.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.84 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is presently 11.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $267.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $262.00 price objective (up previously from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $261.93.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director owned 29,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.26% 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.

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