Teacher Retirement System of Texas Increases Stock Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 16.4% to 143,691 shares (about $27.93 million), representing roughly 0.07% of the company.
• Cheniere authorized a $10.0 billion share repurchase program (up to 21.1% of shares) and reported a large earnings beat of $10.68 EPS versus $3.90 expected, while revenue was roughly in line with estimates.
• Senior insiders sold sizable positions—CFO Zach Davis offloaded 29,000 shares and EVP Sean Markowitz sold 22,246 shares (each reducing their holdings by ~25%)—even as institutional ownership remains high at 87.26%.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 16.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,691 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 20,229 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.07% of Cheniere Energy worth $27,932,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Viking Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 45,000 shares of the energy company's stock worth $8,748,000 after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 62.9% during the third quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 777,200 shares of the energy company's stock worth $182,626,000 after purchasing an additional 300,100 shares during the last quarter. M&G PLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 49.6% during the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 556,285 shares of the energy company's stock worth $130,727,000 after purchasing an additional 184,520 shares during the last quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 35.3% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 196,819 shares of the energy company's stock worth $46,244,000 after purchasing an additional 51,326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trivium Point Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 56,930 shares of the energy company's stock worth $11,067,000 after purchasing an additional 15,927 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,143,800. This represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were 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 owned 64,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Cheniere Energy Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock opened at $257.29 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.07 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.14. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $257.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.90 by $6.78. The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.48 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 26.68% and a return on equity of 32.04%. Cheniere Energy's quarterly revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the energy company to reacquire up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LNG. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $305.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $295.56.

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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