GSA Capital Partners LLP Has $4.63 Million Stock Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• GSA Capital Partners sharply increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 1,855% in the fourth quarter, ending with 23,812 shares valued at about $4.63 million.
• Cheniere reported a big earnings miss for the latest quarter, posting EPS of -$16.65 versus expectations of $4.25, even though revenue of $5.87 billion came in above estimates.
• The company is signaling confidence with a $10 billion share repurchase program and a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus Buy rating.

GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 1,855.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,812 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,594 shares during the quarter. Cheniere Energy comprises 0.4% of GSA Capital Partners LLP's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. GSA Capital Partners LLP's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $4,629,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Viking Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 45,000 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $8,748,000 after acquiring an additional 18,000 shares in the last quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 56,930 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $11,067,000 after acquiring an additional 15,927 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 49.6% during the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 556,285 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $130,727,000 after acquiring an additional 184,520 shares in the last quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 35.3% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 196,819 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $46,244,000 after acquiring an additional 51,326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 12.6% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,460,762 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $343,250,000 after acquiring an additional 163,861 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $248.06 on Tuesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business's fifty day moving average price is $264.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $227.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.98 billion, a PE ratio of 40.80 and a beta of 0.07.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 38.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 15.2 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,143,800. This represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LNG shares. 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 Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Cheniere Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $293.50.

About Cheniere Energy

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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