Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Buys 23,664 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 239.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,549 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,664 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $6,522,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 250.0% in the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 140 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 47.6% in the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 155 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE:LNG opened at $284.04 on Tuesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $186.20 and a 1 year high of $300.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market cap of $59.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 0.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $244.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $222.10.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.90 by $6.78. The company had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.48 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.Cheniere Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.14%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $305.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Cheniere Energy from $282.00 to $271.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.24.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,143,800. This represents a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Cheniere Energy Company 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.