Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. Grows Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. by 100% during the first quarter, bringing its total to 4,000 shares valued at approximately $926,000.
• Cheniere Energy reported a significant increase in earnings, with $7.30 EPS for the quarter, exceeding expectations of $2.35, and a revenue of $4.64 billion, up 42.8% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share with a dividend yield of 0.9%, and has a low dividend payout ratio of 11.68%.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 100.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,000 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.'s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $926,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 150.0% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the energy company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 676.0% during the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 194 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock opened at $231.24 on Thursday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $175.14 and a one year high of $257.65. The stock's fifty day moving average is $235.08 and its 200 day moving average is $228.79. The stock has a market cap of $50.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.98.

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

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on LNG. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $262.00 price objective (up from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $261.93.

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.93, for a total transaction of $1,057,499.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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