KBC Group NV Purchases 15,817 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 21.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,690 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,817 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $20,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 373.1% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the energy company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 150.0% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2,022.2% in the 4th quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 191 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:LNG traded up $3.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $240.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,864,118 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,847,750. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $235.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $226.73. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $167.66 and a fifty-two week high of $257.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by ($1.24). The business had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 18.37%. Cheniere Energy's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is 14.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on LNG. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $277.00 target price on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Mizuho increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research cut Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. 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 MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $258.36.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

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

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

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.