Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 52.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,023 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 25,215 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $5,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LNG. Altman Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 0.4% during the second quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 10,206 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,409,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 1.5% during the third quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,268 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $768,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 0.9% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,385 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 7.3% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 688 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $162,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,488 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $266.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $236.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $282.00 to $271.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.89.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 1.8%

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $250.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.69 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 0.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $214.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $216.93. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $186.20 and a 12 month high of $259.24.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.90 by $6.78. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.48 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.14%.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the energy company to reacquire up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy 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.