D.A. Davidson & CO. Raises Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 10.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,016 shares of the energy company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,052 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $2,549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BIP Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 3,545 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 1,488 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. NDVR Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. NDVR Inc. now owns 1,188 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,346 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $719,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Money Management LLC grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. American Money Management LLC now owns 10,987 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $2,361,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNG traded down $1.91 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $234.06. 1,324,467 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,845,248. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $235.74 and a 200-day moving average of $227.83. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $167.66 and a 52 week high of $257.65. The stock has a market cap of $51.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.19.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.81 by ($1.24). Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 18.37% and a return on equity of 32.62%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is 14.63%.

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In related news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the 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 sale, the director directly owned 29,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,312,236.69. This represents a 12.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wolfe Research lowered Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $258.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $288.00 price objective on Cheniere Energy and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $258.36.

About Cheniere Energy

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.