Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Sold by Clough Capital Partners L P

Key Points

• Clough Capital Partners L P has reduced its stake in Cheniere Energy by 16.7%, owning 88,945 shares valued at approximately $20.6 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• The company recently reported earnings per share (EPS) of $7.30, significantly outperforming analysts' expectations, with revenues increasing 42.8% year-over-year.
• Cheniere Energy has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.8% for investors.

Clough Capital Partners L P lessened its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 16.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 88,945 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 17,836 shares during the period. Cheniere Energy makes up about 2.6% of Clough Capital Partners L P's portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Clough Capital Partners L P's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $20,582,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.93, for a total value of $1,057,499.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 29,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,312,236.69. This represents a 12.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on LNG. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $288.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $262.00 price target (up previously from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $263.29.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Cheniere Energy stock traded down $1.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $240.76. 1,663,170 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,086,649. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $235.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $230.29. The firm has a market cap of $52.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 0.43. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $175.14 and a fifty-two week high of $257.65.

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

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

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

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.