Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Key Points

• Franklin Resources cut its Cheniere Energy stake by 27% in the fourth quarter, selling 208,603 shares and leaving it with 563,460 shares worth about $109.5 million.
• Cheniere reported a sharp earnings miss for the latest quarter, posting a loss of $16.65 per share versus expectations for $4.25 in profit, even as revenue came in above estimates at $5.87 billion.
• The company has backed its shares with a $10 billion buyback program and a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, while analysts still largely rate the stock a Buy with an average target price of $298.63.

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 27.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 563,460 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 208,603 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Cheniere Energy worth $109,531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,219,557 shares of the energy company's stock worth $4,124,870,000 after acquiring an additional 414,022 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,007,073 shares of the energy company's stock worth $1,411,542,000 after acquiring an additional 377,369 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $731,774,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,025,609 shares of the energy company's stock worth $475,633,000 after acquiring an additional 359,123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,786,636 shares of the energy company's stock worth $419,824,000 after acquiring an additional 95,545 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock opened at $241.55 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion and a PE ratio of 39.73. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $252.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $230.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). The company had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 38.95%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the energy company to purchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.51%.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In related news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,143,800. This trade represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Cheniere Energy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S.-based energy company that develops, owns and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and markets LNG to global customers. The company's core activities include natural gas liquefaction, long‑term and short‑term LNG sales and marketing, and the associated midstream services required to move gas from production basins to international markets. Cheniere focuses on converting domestic natural gas into LNG for export, providing a bridge between North American supply and overseas demand.

Cheniere's principal operating assets are large-scale LNG export terminals located on the U.S.

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