Sovereign Financial Group Inc. Acquires Shares of 5,186 Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 5,186 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,472,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $731,774,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 555.0% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 810,138 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $157,483,000 after acquiring an additional 686,459 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 518.8% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 577,533 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $112,267,000 after purchasing an additional 484,198 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,219,557 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $4,124,870,000 after purchasing an additional 414,022 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its position in Cheniere Energy by 3,902.4% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 389,676 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $75,749,000 after purchasing an additional 379,940 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Cheniere Energy

In related news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. This trade represents a 25.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on LNG shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings lowered Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $230.83 on Tuesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $186.20 and a 12-month high of $300.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $245.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $232.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.37 billion and a PE ratio of 37.97.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.25 by ($20.90). Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 38.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the energy company to reacquire up to 21.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.51%.

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.