Simon Quick Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,523 shares of the energy company’s stock after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $542,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 170.5% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 119 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC bought a new position in Cheniere Energy during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $232.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Bank of America started coverage on Cheniere Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $204.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.64.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

LNG stock opened at $233.47 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $221.23 and a 200-day moving average of $196.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.91 and a beta of 0.99. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $152.31 and a 12 month high of $257.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $3.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $2.06. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 22.70% and a return on equity of 41.44%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.37 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.77%.

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.