Ninety One UK Ltd Reduces Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Ninety One UK Ltd lowered its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 0.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,506,913 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 2,804 shares during the quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd owned about 0.68% of Cheniere Energy worth $348,700,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,681,846 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,220,858,000 after purchasing an additional 243,418 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,126,512 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $886,664,000 after purchasing an additional 379,142 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,237,303 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $695,599,000 after purchasing an additional 450,031 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $629,197,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,184,891 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $469,448,000 after purchasing an additional 59,281 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In related news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was 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 owned 29,733 shares in the company, valued at $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock traded up $0.85 on Friday, reaching $235.08. The company had a trading volume of 1,706,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,845,504. The firm has a market cap of $52.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $235.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $228.17. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $167.66 and a 1 year high of $257.65.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by ($1.24). Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.62% and a net margin of 18.37%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. Cheniere Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is currently 14.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LNG. Jefferies Financial Group set a $288.00 target price on Cheniere Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Cheniere Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $277.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $258.36.

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.