Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Acquired by Bensler LLC

Bensler LLC grew its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 9.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,542 shares of the energy company’s stock after buying an additional 3,580 shares during the period. Bensler LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $10,360,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 187.0% in the 2nd quarter. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC now owns 6,600 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,607,000 after acquiring an additional 4,300 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its stake in Cheniere Energy by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 22,682 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $5,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,744 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 10.2% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 4,805 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1,666.7% in the second quarter. North Capital Inc. now owns 212 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the second quarter worth about $72,354,000. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In related news, Director W Benjamin Moreland purchased 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $208.22 per share, with a total value of $1,041,100.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 9,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,052,216.32. The trade was a 102.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on LNG shares. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $262.00 price objective (up from $253.00) on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday, September 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $268.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $268.73.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $207.83 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $227.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.43. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $188.70 and a 1 year high of $257.65.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The energy company reported $4.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.75 by $2.00. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 21.05% and a return on equity of 37.83%. The company had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.93 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This is a positive change from Cheniere Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 12.37%.

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.