Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Shares Purchased by Park Avenue Securities LLC

Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 26.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,609 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 1,403 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $1,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 4.5% in the fourth 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 buying an additional 243,418 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,126,512 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $886,664,000 after buying an additional 379,142 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,237,303 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $695,599,000 after buying an additional 450,031 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $629,197,000. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,696,002 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $606,907,000 after purchasing an additional 448,189 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of LNG traded up $2.95 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $237.99. The stock had a trading volume of 1,482,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,898,132. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.82 and a 1 year high of $257.65. The firm has a market cap of $52.78 billion, a PE ratio of 16.72 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock's 50 day moving average is $231.58 and its 200 day moving average is $225.26.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 37.19% and a net margin of 20.71%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Cheniere Energy's payout ratio is currently 14.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on LNG. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $254.00 to $258.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $255.00 to $247.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $277.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $252.23.

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In other news, Director Neal A. Shear sold 4,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 29,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently 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.