Victory Capital Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 6.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 105,654 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 7,205 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $24,448,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 150.0% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the energy company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new position in Cheniere Energy during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Nemes Rush Group LLC boosted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 2,022.2% during the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 191 shares of the energy company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LNG. Wall Street Zen cut Cheniere Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wolfe Research lowered Cheniere Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $262.00 price target (up previously from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $260.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cheniere Energy 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 value of $1,057,499.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 29,733 shares in the company, valued at $7,312,236.69. The trade was a 12.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 1.4%

NYSE:LNG traded up $3.04 on Thursday, hitting $226.33. The stock had a trading volume of 1,080,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,141,936. The company has a market cap of $50.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.54 and a beta of 0.42. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $167.66 and a 52 week high of $257.65. The business's fifty day moving average is $235.42 and its 200 day moving average is $229.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.81 by ($1.24). The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 18.37% and a return on equity of 32.62%. The company's revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.63%.

Cheniere Energy Profile

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.