Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Shares Sold by Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 13.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 101,179 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 15,075 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $17,689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 27.1% during the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 29,235 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $4,715,000 after buying an additional 6,235 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $852,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 187,236 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $30,198,000 after buying an additional 11,800 shares during the period. Investment House LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $854,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 898,191 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $153,330,000 after buying an additional 31,832 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

NYSE:LNG opened at $183.07 on Wednesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.31 and a 12-month high of $187.35. The firm has a market cap of $41.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s 50-day moving average is $174.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The energy company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $2.13. The business had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.52 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 28.55% and a return on equity of 48.19%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.61 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 8.29 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, June 17th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the energy company to purchase up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were given a $0.435 dividend. This represents a $1.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LNG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $223.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.40.

Cheniere Energy Company 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.