BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Trims Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S reduced its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. by 62.6%, ending up with 41,442 shares after selling 69,511 shares in Q1.
• Cheniere Energy recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with an annualized dividend yield of 0.9%.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Cheniere Energy's target price from $267.00 to $284.00, while multiple analysts maintain a generally positive outlook on the stock.

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S decreased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 62.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 41,442 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 69,511 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $9,590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,937,749 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $4,844,995,000 after acquiring an additional 54,801 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,681,846 shares of the energy company's stock worth $1,220,858,000 after buying an additional 243,418 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 12.9% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,660,545 shares of the energy company's stock worth $1,078,450,000 after purchasing an additional 534,033 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.9% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,492,443 shares of the energy company's stock worth $808,151,000 after purchasing an additional 255,140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,185,605 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $737,149,000 after acquiring an additional 359,435 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cheniere Energy Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of LNG stock traded down $3.4170 during trading on Friday, hitting $237.1930. 1,434,026 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,843,400. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $175.14 and a 52-week high of $257.65. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $234.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $229.11.

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

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were given 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 payout ratio is 11.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $7,312,236.69. This represents a 12.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LNG shares. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $262.00 price objective (up from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $288.00 price objective on Cheniere Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $267.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $261.93.

Cheniere Energy 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.