Verition Fund Management LLC Buys 88,841 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Key Points

• Verition Fund Management boosted its Cheniere Energy stake by 160% in the fourth quarter, buying 88,841 additional shares to bring its total holding to 144,352 shares worth about $28.1 million.
• Cheniere reported a quarterly EPS miss on May 6, posting a loss of $16.65 per share versus expectations for $4.25, even though revenue of $5.87 billion came in above estimates and rose 7.8% year over year.
• The company continues to return cash to shareholders through a $10 billion buyback authorization and a quarterly dividend of $0.555 per share, while analysts remain generally positive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and a $298.63 price target.

Verition Fund Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 160.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 144,352 shares of the energy company's stock after buying an additional 88,841 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC owned 0.07% of Cheniere Energy worth $28,061,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Viking Fund Management LLC grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 45,000 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $8,748,000 after buying an additional 18,000 shares during the period. Trivium Point Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 38.8% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. M&G PLC raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 49.6% in the 3rd 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 period. Waverton Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Cheniere Energy by 35.3% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 196,819 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $46,244,000 after purchasing an additional 51,326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG lifted its position in Cheniere Energy by 227.7% during the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 15,505 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $3,014,000 after purchasing an additional 10,774 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $240.85 on Monday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $251.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $231.40. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $300.89. The company has a market cap of $50.47 billion and a P/E ratio of 39.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.57.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.25 by ($20.90). The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the energy company to buy up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at $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 is available 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 transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,143,800. The trade was a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.