Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 36.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,623 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 1,520 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $629,197,000. Ninety One UK Ltd increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1,400.7% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,509,717 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $324,393,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409,116 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 61.2% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,664,439 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $357,638,000 after purchasing an additional 631,787 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $130,772,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 18,281.6% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 575,897 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $123,743,000 after purchasing an additional 572,764 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $229.34 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $50.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12 and a beta of 0.41. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $153.03 and a one year high of $257.65. The business has a fifty day moving average of $227.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by ($1.24). The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 20.71%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is currently 14.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheniere Energy

In other news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.51, for a total value of $1,975,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 33,934 shares in the company, valued at $7,448,852.34. This trade represents a 20.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LNG shares. Wolfe Research downgraded Cheniere Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $252.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $252.23.

About Cheniere Energy

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.