Hennessy Advisors Inc. Increases Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Hennessy Advisors increased its Cheniere Energy stake by 14.2% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 134,754 shares valued at approximately $32.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 87.26% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Cheniere carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $304.35; recent targets range from $290 to $334.
• Cheniere reported quarterly revenue of $5.73 billion, up 23.5% year over year, though earnings per share of $3.02 fell short of the $3.11 consensus estimate. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, equivalent to a 0.8% annual yield.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 14.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 134,754 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 16,757 shares during the quarter. Cheniere Energy makes up 1.0% of Hennessy Advisors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 0.07% of Cheniere Energy worth $32,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $335,000. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 13.3% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 8,825 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $2,149,000 after buying an additional 1,035 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 23.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 183,153 shares of the energy company's stock worth $44,600,000 after buying an additional 34,422 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 103,040 shares of the energy company's stock worth $25,092,000 after buying an additional 805 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 87.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 36,502 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $8,889,000 after buying an additional 16,977 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LNG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group set a $290.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $327.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $300.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $304.35.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of LNG opened at $282.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.87. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02 and a beta of -0.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $260.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $253.19.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported $3.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.11 by ($0.09). Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 13.57% and a return on equity of 29.80%. The firm had revenue of $5.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $7.30 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 23.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 16.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is 16.53%.

Cheniere Energy Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LNG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.