Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. by 26.0%, selling 4,103 shares and ending up with 11,689 shares worth $2,705,000.
• Cheniere Energy posted a record earnings per share of $7.30 for the last quarter, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.35, and marking a 42.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.8% and a dividend payout ratio of 11.68%.

Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 26.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,689 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 4,103 shares during the quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $2,705,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its position in Cheniere Energy by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its stake in Cheniere Energy by 676.0% during the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 194 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wolfe Research lowered Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $258.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered 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 issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $261.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the director directly owned 29,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 0.4%

Cheniere Energy stock traded up $0.92 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $242.50. 586,991 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,090,275. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $234.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $229.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The energy company reported $7.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.35 by $4.95. The business had revenue of $4.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.48 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 21.05% and a return on equity of 37.83%. The business's revenue was up 42.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.84 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

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

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.