Fayez Sarofim & Co Makes New Investment in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Key Points

• Fayez Sarofim & Co has acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy, Inc., buying 1,318 shares worth approximately $305,000 during the first quarter of the year.
• The company's recent earnings report revealed an impressive $7.30 EPS, significantly outperforming the expected $2.35 EPS, indicating strong financial performance.
• Cheniere Energy's stock has been rated positively by analysts, with a consensus target price of $260.36, reflecting a generally optimistic outlook for its growth.

Fayez Sarofim & Co purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,318 shares of the energy company's stock, valued at approximately $305,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 1,494,901 shares of the energy company's stock worth $345,920,000 after purchasing an additional 105,875 shares during the period. Fractal Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Fractal Investments LLC now owns 75,585 shares of the energy company's stock worth $17,490,000 after purchasing an additional 16,385 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 23,505 shares of the energy company's stock worth $5,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,630 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 37,378 shares of the energy company's stock worth $8,032,000 after purchasing an additional 1,359 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,765 shares of the energy company's stock worth $2,722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,359 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In related news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was 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 trade represents a 12.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on LNG. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $288.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $267.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $261.93.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNG stock traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $229.37. 816,641 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,129,804. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.14 and a 52 week high of $257.65. The stock has a market cap of $50.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.40 and a beta of 0.43. The stock's 50-day moving average is $235.57 and its 200-day moving average is $228.77.

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

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.68%.

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.