Railway Pension Investments Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Railway Pension Investments Ltd increased its Cheniere Energy stake by 18.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 919,500 shares valued at about $178.7 million. Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 87.26% of the stock.
• Cheniere’s latest quarterly results were mixed: revenue came in at $5.87 billion, above estimates, but earnings per share missed expectations by a wide margin. Analysts still expect the company to post 15.2 EPS for the current year.
• The company recently authorized a $10 billion share buyback and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, implying a 1.0% yield. Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $293.50.

Railway Pension Investments Ltd lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 18.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 919,500 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 142,300 shares during the quarter. Cheniere Energy accounts for approximately 2.1% of Railway Pension Investments Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Railway Pension Investments Ltd owned 0.43% of Cheniere Energy worth $178,742,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sfmg LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 3,326 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 407,396 shares of the energy company's stock worth $79,194,000 after buying an additional 12,744 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 166,728 shares of the energy company's stock worth $32,410,000 after buying an additional 7,013 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth $731,774,000. Finally, Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth $76,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheniere Energy

In other news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,622,720. This trade represents a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of Cheniere Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,143,800. This trade represents a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on LNG. Benchmark reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research raised shares of Cheniere Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $293.50.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 2.2%

NYSE:LNG opened at $224.42 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The company has a market cap of $47.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.91 and a beta of 0.07. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $261.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $229.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.25 by ($20.90). Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The business had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 15.2 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.51%.

About Cheniere Energy

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.

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