Fiera Capital Corp Grows Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Fiera Capital Corp boosted its Cheniere Energy stake by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 54,290 shares worth about $10.6 million. Several other hedge funds also increased their positions, and institutional investors now own 87.26% of the company.
• Cheniere saw notable insider selling: EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares and CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares in late March, trimming their ownership stakes by roughly a quarter. Insiders currently own just 0.55% of the stock.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a Buy consensus and an average price target of $298.63. The company also authorized a $10 billion share buyback, though its latest quarter missed EPS estimates even as revenue topped expectations.

Fiera Capital Corp increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 16.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,290 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 7,788 shares during the quarter. Fiera Capital Corp's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $10,553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Viking Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 45,000 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $8,748,000 after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 56,930 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $11,067,000 after purchasing an additional 15,927 shares during the last quarter. M&G PLC grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 49.6% in the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 556,285 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $130,727,000 after purchasing an additional 184,520 shares during the last quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 35.3% in the 3rd quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 196,819 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $46,244,000 after purchasing an additional 51,326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 227.7% in the 4th quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 15,505 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $3,014,000 after purchasing an additional 10,774 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheniere Energy

In related news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was 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 represents a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on LNG. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, UBS Group set a $290.00 price target on Cheniere Energy in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of LNG stock opened at $236.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $255.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $230.46. The stock has a market cap of $49.58 billion and a PE ratio of 38.92. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $186.20 and a 1 year high of $300.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.57.

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

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

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Cheniere Energy 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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