Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Acquired by Royal Bank of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Cheniere Energy by 25.7%, owning approximately 2,395,267 shares valued at about $554 million by the end of the recent quarter.
• Cheniere Energy's total revenue increased by 42.8% year-over-year, reporting $4.64 billion for the recent quarter, significantly exceeding analyst expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 11.68%.

Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 25.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,395,267 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 488,994 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 1.08% of Cheniere Energy worth $554,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LNG. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $294,793,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 84.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,651,500 shares of the energy company's stock worth $354,858,000 after purchasing an additional 756,900 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,660,545 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,078,450,000 after acquiring an additional 534,033 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 346.6% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 568,627 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $131,580,000 after acquiring an additional 441,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake 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. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNG stock traded down $2.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $237.31. 1,768,833 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,083,424. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $175.14 and a twelve month high of $257.65. The firm has a market cap of $52.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 0.43. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $235.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $230.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.98.

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

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on LNG shares. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $262.00 target price (up previously from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $268.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Cheniere Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $263.29.

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.