Scotiabank Boosts Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Price Target to $290.00

Key Points

• Scotiabank raised its price target on Cheniere Energy to $290 from $288 and kept a sector outperform rating, implying about 21% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Cheniere has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $293.50, though some firms recently mixed in higher and lower target changes.
• The company reported a big earnings miss for the quarter, posting ($16.65) EPS versus the $4.25 estimate, even as revenue of $5.87 billion beat expectations and rose 7.8% year over year.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by analysts at Scotiabank from $288.00 to $290.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "sector outperform" rating on the energy company's stock. Scotiabank's target price indicates a potential upside of 21.01% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on LNG. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $338.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Cheniere Energy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $293.50.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

NYSE LNG traded down $4.67 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $239.64. The stock had a trading volume of 1,357,962 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,714,075. Cheniere Energy has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $300.89. The company has a market cap of $50.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.37 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $227.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. 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 net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 38.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy will post 14.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,143,800. The trade was a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. This trade represents 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 insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter worth about $220,000. ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 9.4% in the first quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 13,541 shares of the energy company's stock worth $3,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163 shares in the last quarter. Mathes Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter worth about $227,000. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter worth about $711,000. Finally, DJE Kapital AG lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2,215.5% in the first quarter. DJE Kapital AG now owns 67,381 shares of the energy company's stock worth $19,778,000 after acquiring an additional 64,471 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company's stock.

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.

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