Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Position Lowered by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. reduced its Cheniere Energy stake by 26.9% in the third quarter, selling 20,607 shares and retaining 55,942 shares valued at about $15.1 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 87.26%, while several major investors—including Bank of New York Mellon and Wellington Management—recently increased their holdings.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Buy, with an average price target of $324.41; Cheniere also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.625 per share from $0.555.

Candriam S.C.A. cut its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 26.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,942 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 20,607 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $15,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 174.3% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,244,268 shares of the energy company's stock worth $636,834,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,058 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Cheniere Energy by 210.1% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,444,403 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $584,237,000 after buying an additional 1,656,194 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,135,088 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $510,307,000 after buying an additional 239,680 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 50.2% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 867,496 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $246,161,000 after buying an additional 289,963 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chickasaw Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Chickasaw Capital Management LLC now owns 893,452 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $240,365,000 after buying an additional 37,325 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LNG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $310.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday, October 30th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $311.00 to $327.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $300.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $324.41.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 2.6%

NYSE LNG opened at $285.24 on Tuesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $186.20 and a 12 month high of $330.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $283.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $258.41. The stock has a market cap of $58.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.01.

Cheniere Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 17th. Investors of record on Monday, November 9th will be given a dividend of $0.6250 per share. This is a positive change from Cheniere Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.5550. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 9th. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is currently 15.49%.

Cheniere Energy Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S. energy company focused on producing and exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG). Its operations include the Sabine Pass LNG facility in Louisiana and the Corpus Christi LNG facility in Texas, where natural gas is processed and liquefied for shipment.

The company supplies LNG to customers in international markets, including countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America. Its activities also include sourcing natural gas and marketing LNG under long-term and other sales agreements.

Founded in 1996, Cheniere initially developed LNG import infrastructure before shifting its focus to U.S.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.